


Living Remnants (An Undertale AU)

by orphan_account



Series: Living Remnants Series [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, death mentions, long fic, wild
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-25
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2020-10-01 19:57:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 48
Words: 74,042
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20387185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: What if all the monsters needed to escape was a single determination soul, and a ritual preformed among humans? What if the other humans who fell down were kept around and worked with the monsters?





	1. The Legends

_Legends say that those who climb the mountain never return_

_Sure, we never came back_

_But that doesn't mean that we died_

_No one's been down here in thirty years_

_I thought people finally would've taken the hint_

_I guess I was wrong._


	2. Ruinous Places

Deeper. Deeper. Even deeper she fell into the pitch black depths below her. She shouldn't have come down this way. She realized that it was foolish of her, especially with all the warnings her whole town had been given for thirty years by the local police. It was strange that she still had the urge to explore the mountainous region, but she did. And those urges always had to be fulfilled, didn't they? Though the deep descent soon came to an end, as the ground starting coming up to greet the young girl. She didn't scream though, that wouldn't be good of her. She just gulped and braced herself, waiting for the pain and the death she'd heard so much about. 

But then, something she found to be strange happened. She felt herself land on something soft and springy, and nothing seemed to hurt either. How was she still alive? What did she land on? Well, the thing she was on was a patch of golden flowers, but how she survived this was a mystery to both herself, and most likely the people reading this. She got herself up, after a bit of staring up at the sky, the last she'd see of it for quite a while, since there was no clear way of getting back up there. Now, it was time to find another way out of here, especially without running into any monsters that might be down here, according to those same old legends

She took only a moment to spot the large purple door that lied a small way away from the room full of flowers. And yet, it felt much longer for some reason, and the walls seemed to widen around her. Well, that just meant this was going to be even more 'fun' than she thought. 

Staring at the door in front of her, it took a moment of long contemplation before she finally decided to open up the door. And taking from what happened next, I think she would've liked it better if the door was closed.

She soon saw what looked to be a lone flower, all by itself in the grass, even if it was strange that grass was growing where it was seemingly dark. Though, that wasn't what was weird about this. Unless talking flowers were normal, I mean.

"Well, howdy, my name's Flowey!" the flower exclaimed, in a voice that almost seemed too chipper. "Never seen a face like your's before, so that must mean that you're new here. That's great, because I'm just dying to teach you how things work around here." That part made her a little bit nervous, but she decided to go along with this anyway. I mean, what else was there to do? "Let's get started!" Before she could say a word, the whole atmosphere changed, and a red heart appeared in front of her, as she came face to face with Flowey in a whole new light.

"Well, first off, that's-" Flowey cut himself off before he looked at the red heart. That wasn't anything he'd seen in about a hundred year. Not since another human had come down here. And that gave the flower an idea. "That SOUL... You have Determination, don't you." His smile turned sickening, as she nodded, unsure of how else she was supposed to respond to this. A laugh that made her just as nauseous as his new smile rang through the room, before a bunch of white bullets appeared around her. "Well, isn't that just RICH?! Hah, your soul could make me powerful. The most powerful in this worthless tomb. And the power's held with a kid?! This is gonna be easy!"

Those bullets soon began closing in, which brought terror to the young girl's eyes. She was going to die. She had basically just defied death itself, and she was about to be thrown at death once again. She let out a cry for help. She didn't care who, but she wanted someone to get her out of this, if she couldn't do it herself. And then, whether it be luck or fate, someone did.

A ball of fire appeared close to where Flowey stood, as the bullets dropped to the ground in a circle where she stood. Though she couldn't find the source of this yet, as she watched the flower get knocked away, a second relief washed over her, and it made her believe that this was a benevolent figure. And believe me, this was probably the one of the nicest faces she'd see in the Underground.

What soon stood before was a goat woman, and a very tall one at that. It did make things a little more difficult, since she had to crane her neck to look at this new face, but she manage. "What a horrid creature, trying to do such things to a poor, innocent youth," the lady said, giving off a small smile to reassure the small human. "Do not be afraid my child, my name is Toriel, the Caretaker of these Ruins. And, oh dear-" It seemed she had also seen the red SOUL, and it made her nervous about what might become of this child. "It's not safe for you to be alone in a place like this, but don't worry, I'll guide you to my home." She didn't even have time to say no before everything returned to normal, and Toriel took her hand and started walking. 

If there was one way to describe these Ruins, it would have something to do with puzzles, because this place was chock full of them. Toriel stay with her the whole time as she was allowed to figure them out on her own, with a little assistance, of course. And even if the walk did have it's share of strange conversations, it was pleasant compared to her first encounter with monsterkind back in the first room. And what was even better, was when they finall made it to Toriel's house.

Now this place almost reminded her of her home on the surface. Cozy, yet comforting. Once she got a chance to look at the place, Toriel turned back to her. "Welcome home, my child." The part where she didn't add 'my' there was a little bit curious, the child didn't seem to mind it much. "Please, look around, and make yourself comfortable, dear. I have a few things I need to attend to." She nodded, before watching the goat woman go off into another room. So she was alone and free to do what she wanted? This should be a little fun.

She decided to go first toward the hallway away from where Toriel had gone, wanting to look there before seeing what she was doing. And the first thing she noticed were three rooms, all in a neat little row. And the urge to explore them just grew as she even took a look at the doors. First things first, the one on the left. Without as much hesitation, she opened up the door pretty quickly, though a part of her wished she'd done that slower.

Because what it revealed was none other than a small child, all by herself.


	3. Child of the Distant Past

So, there were really other humans down here? Ones that had survived, no less. She'd thought that they were all dead by now, but maybe this one was alive because she'd stayed with Toriel. But wait, wasn't the last human to have fallen down here from thirty whole years ago? And even then, she'd heard that it was a boy that time around. And to top it all off, this girl had to be even younger than she was. How could she possibly have been one of those children from so long ago?

Well, now it looked like this question was about to be answered, because the other girl soon took notice of her, and seemed a little bit startled that there was someone else who was here, to say the least. She scooted back toward the wall, frightened by this stranger, and it didn't look like she'd be warming up to this change any time soon. This was going to make things a bit difficult, but of course, she was determined. 

She approached the child, trying to see if just showing her she wasn't trying to hurt her would help, even if it didn't. This just ended with her cornering herself even more. It was almost too obvious that she hadn't seen another human in quite a long time, which would also be a problem. But I guess it would make a sense, due to this being the realm of monsters, after all. Even so, she thought that just talking this out would make this easier. So although she definitely wasn't the best with words, what other choice did she have?

"You don't have to be scared of me, I'm not going to hurt you, I promise," she said in a soft voice, causing the other to at least look up. That was a good sign that she was starting to get through. Even if she was still shaking like a frightened mouse, and holed up in the small corner, it's progress no doubt. 

"You're not..?" the whispery voice of the girl reached her ears slowly, but surely. A response to that question was easy, but the next would be harder to explain. "But momma said the other monsters weren't supposed to be in here, so why are you?"

She paused, realizing that the one before her not seeing other humans in so long had more of a negative effect than someone would first think. Not to worry though, she could still show her, right? "I promise, I'm not here to hurt you, and I'm not a monster either. I'm a human, like you." Now, that seemed to catch the other by surprise, a curious look replacing the initial expression of fear.

"A human? But, other humans don't come down here anymore, at least momma said they didn't."

"I mean, I guess that it's been a pretty long time since anyone's come down here at all, right? Well, I guess I'm the first in a while. Anyway, you really don't need to be afraid of me, I don't want to hurt you." The smaller child seemed to be a little reassured by that, even if she wasn't fully convinced. She planned to wait for someone else that we all know to make her judgement on the matter, even if it would take her all day to come in. Even though it didn't actually take that much time, because someone came in to interrupt the conversation.

"Fiona, dear? There's someone I wanted you to meet, if you'd like to come out and do so-" The familiar goat woman stopped short once she noticed they were both in the room, though she almost seemed to be relieved at the same time. I don't know if you know this, but the little one was never one to be the most sociable of people, especially with other humans, as it looked. So them talking made her part in this a lot less direct. And maybe this could be the child that she could have stay here with them forever, especially since her soul trait could get her killed out there. "Ah, I see you two have already met, so there isn't a need for introductions, I presume?" Both girls shook their heads as a reply. "Very good, my dear children. The pie is just about to be ready as well, so I'll make sure to let you know when it's ready."

As soon as she'd said that, the lady stepped away from the room and closed the door behind her. The whole scene left Fiona, as she'd figured out her name to be, seemed to be growing a small amount of trust in the other human due to Toriel's words. I mean, if the woman she'd adopted as a mother knew and treated this new human as another child, she could definitely follow suit. She brought herself out from the corner a lot more than expected at her first try, but that wasn't necessarily a bad thing.

"So, are you gonna stay with me and momma then?" she asked, almost sounding hopeful. It must've been a while since she'd seen anyone new around these walls, so it wasn't much of a surprise. But then, it made the other have to think about this. Sure, everything seemed so nice here, but she had to go back at some point. But for a short time, maybe she could entertain that possibility, just to make the child happy for a time. With a nod in reply, Fiona beamed with an excitement she'd desperately wanted to feel for quite a while now, which made her laugh a little bit. An underlying thought made her realize that she couldn't leave right away. So, maybe staying a night couldn't be so bad, right? And the younger girl was so happy, how could she break that in one day? "Thank you-"

Just before opening up her mouth to say something else, Toriel's voice rang through the hallway. "Children, the pie is ready!" That got both of their attention right away, even if one of them didn't even know how this pie was going to taste. Food just seemed good right now, and you can't go wrong with pie. 

Just before the first was about to race out the door to try and get the first piece, Fiona tugged on her shirt to try and get her attention. "Wait, you um, never told me your name-" she said, wanting to find out, despite the fact it wasn't all that important, and she hadn't asked in the first place. It wasn't like this was top secret, right?

"Oh, Frisk? That's a nice name."


	4. Trust Issues

Frisk and Fiona both took their time eating the pie generously given to them by Toriel, especially the former, since it was her first time taking a taste of it. Fiona seemed to find it funny, since it had been a while since she'd gotten that child-like first taste of such things. Toriel kept herself in the next room, making sure she could watch both of her children from a safe distance. After all, what if one of them choked, or anything of the same nature happened? There was no shame in being prepared, which was what she'd always say. 

But, all of this food, and all of this protection made Frisk start to think. Though everything that was given to her was nice and all, she would have to leave this place soon. Heck, she might even leave now if she had the chance, being as well fed as she was. She could probably get through the rest of this place with no problems. Well, except for one, but that would get cleared up if she said something, or at least thats what she thought. The thing she wanted to clear up? How was she supposed to leave this place, and get back to the surface? Finishing up her slice of pie, she drifted toward where the goat woman was seated in the next room.

Toriel instantly looked up toward the girl from her chair, a soft smile on her face. "Are you done with your pie, my child? How was it?" she asked, oblivious to what was about to be asked of her. Even if a part of her thought that this would be a lot to ask, since the lady seemed so lonely, it was her only way out, and there was no way that she was going to waste it. She was determined to get home, as she was with most of the things she did.

"It was good, but I kind of want to know how to get out of here. I have-" Frisk started to say, before she was cut off with a small bit of hushing from the woman. 

"Oh no, I- I don't know how to exit these Ruins, and I'm not sure why you'd want to. There's everything you could ever ask for," she replied, though she seemed to be looking away, as if she had something to hide. This worried the girl, but it didn't deter her. There had to be some way, there always was. But before she could say anything more, she was cut off again. "Let us not discuss this matter any longer, I have a room that I have to clean up for you, you know." She rushed off without a word, leaving Frisk speechless. Was there really nothing left that she could do? Was she really doomed to stay in these catacombs for the rest of her life?

As if being caught from that moment of despair, Fiona tugged on her shirt again, causing her to look back at the girl, with a bit of that same bout of false hopelessness still plaguing her voice. "Hm? What is it?"

"Um, I heard you and mama were talking about leaving. I don't really want you to leave, 'cause you're really nice, but since you said you wanted to, there's a door downstairs where there are some people we talk to. Maybe they could help you leave?" she suggested, refilling Frisk with that determination that she felt earlier. If those people could really get her out of here, that would be amazing. Though it wouldn't be too nice not even saying goodbye to Toriel, the woman did seem defensive. Maybe it would be best if she didn't know about this.

"Yes, okay! Can we go now?" Fiona nodded, and without another word she began to go toward the stairs, Frisk following behind, and making sure she was quiet. The other girl didn't seem too worried about it, but maybe that was because she was almost painfully naive to the fact that her mother wasn't too keen on letting go of another child, especially one that had the soul trait that Frisk exhibited. Nothing much was said about it though, since right now, it really wasn't harming anything, was it?

Once down the stairs, both of them thought they were safe to talk now, since that seemed to be a pretty long flight of stairs. And since she didn't see a door anywhere, she definitely question what the younger girl was doing, and if she really was telling the truth about those people she'd brought up earlier. "You said there was a door? Is it farther back or something?" she asked, trying not to be rude, since she was talking to a smaller child, but also trying to convey that this was really important to her. 

"Yeah, there's like a big long hallway you go through so you get to it. I dunno why it's there though, it's really creepy and dusty..." It was almost discouraging to hear that, but they really did have to get going if they wanted to make it there without notice, so Frisk just disregarded it and kept going forward, first this time since she didn't think that it would be too hard to find her way through a simple hallway, with Fiona walking right at her side. 

Now, they'd finally reached it. The apparent answer to Frisk's problem, and they way to escape wherever she'd fallen down. Though the smaller one would be sad to see the other go, she could probably grin and bear it. I mean, maybe someone else would fall down and be her friend. She could probably wait that long, right? "Okay, the door thing's right here. I dunno if they'll be here or not, 'cause they sometimes aren't, but we can wait, I think." Frisk let out a sigh at the thought of having to wait even longer, almost growing restless in thinking that she would have to sit down here and wait for people that she didn't even know existed until about five minutes ago. Thankfully, they wouldn't have to wait at all.

Unfortunately, that was because an event that was probably unavoidable if you're reading a story like this occurred. Toriel had found them, and she didn't look very happy. Both girls took a look at each other before staring back at their mother, who had a glowering, yet protective look on her face. "Children, if you were thinking about leaving this place, I'm afraid that I can not let you do that."

It was at that moment, Frisk realized, she fucked up.


	5. Mother Knows Best

The two children looked at their mother, who's expression was stone cold, but if you looked hard enough, you could find an ounce of betrayal in her eyes. And who could blame her? The poor woman was seeing yet another child of her's try to leave her, with the aid of another, who she thought would never do something like this. Or maybe, even she was leaving too? No, that was too much for the mother's heart to take, just the thought almost brought her to tears. But she was standing firm now, and the two could see that plainly. To get Frisk out of this place, to get her home, major convincing would have to be done, to the likes of which neither of them had ever tried before. 

"You really want to leave me so badly that you would go behind my back, just so you wouldn't have to say anything?" Toriel asked, the words coming out more heartbroken than she had originally intended. The girls looked at each other, neither knowing what they were supposed to say to that. But they were soon interrupted before either of them could utter a word. "The place outside here is not a place for children, especially not children such as you." Her finger pointed right at the older of the two. "Do you know what would happen if they saw you? They would- They would kill you!"

Though Fiona seemed downtrodden, ready to give up due to these circumstances, Frisk wasn't about to give up as easily. Determination welled inside of her, and she was ready to try and convince Toriel that she could survive out there. "But, have to go home. I can make it, I can show you!" she exclaimed, grabbing the attention of both the others. Especially Toriel. 

"Fine then." The woman's expression grew blank, and even harder than it was before. "Fiona, stand back for me." The younger girl obliged, a look of fear in her eyes as she went toward the back of the room. Her eyes stayed on Frisk, uncertain of what might happen to her. "If you really wish to leave so badly. If you really think that you can survive out there on your own, then show it to me. Prove to me that you are strong enough to survive." Before anything else could be said, the atmosphere changed, as it did when she'd seen Flowey for the first time. But this time, no one was going to save her, and she had no idea what to do. 

* Toriel blocks the way

Four boxes appeared in front of Frisk for her to pick from. [ * FIGHT ] [ * ACT ] [ * ITEM ] or [ * MERCY ]. She couldn't do the first thing, and did she even have any items? Mercy seemed to be what she wanted to do most. She didn't want to hurt her, even if this was to prove herself, even if Toriel might try to hurt her back. This was what her heart said was right. She touched the Mercy button, and two more options appeared. Spare or Flee. Her hand instantly went to Spare, because running away would just defeat the purpose of everything she'd worked toward. 

Toriel didn't say a word as she sent a number of fireballs flying toward her. Though one hit her, it didn't kill her thankfully enough, just sent her HP down, which she noticed as the fire hit, and left a burn on her arm. She would be okay, she hoped. Though it didn't do anything right then, she decided to keep her strategy going. Surely if she did this long enough, she would be able to get some sort of result

So she tried again.

And again.

And again.

Enough times that it almost seemed like a waste of time, until, Frisk noticed, her gaze softened. Was she breaking through? This was amazing. She did it again. 

"Please stop doing that," Toriel said. Again.

"That isn't going to work." Again.

"Fight me or stay here!" Again.

"Stop that, please." Again.

The fireballs stopped, even though they had stopped actually hitting her a while ago, and her burn wounds she had already amassed weren't phasing the girl anymore. "You can stay here, with me." Again.

"We can have a good life here, the three of us." Again.

"You..." Everything seemed to stop right there. "You really want to go home, and leave this place, don't you..." Frisk nodded, a pleading look coming onto her face. "How could I have been so blind? You have a family up there too, don't you?" Though that wasn't really true, she nodded again anyway. If that got her to let her go, then she was alright with a small lie. "Oh, how selfish of me..." Things went back to normal after that, and Fiona began coming out from her spot against the wall in the back. "I really should let you go then, especially since with a soul such as your's you could cross the barrier." Frisk beamed, seeming excited to see that she'd finally come through after how hard she'd tried for this. "But if you really want to go, then I need two favors from you, do you think you can handle them?"

Frisk nodded once again. "Anything, just name it," she added in, with a chipper voice.

"First, please don't come back here after you've left. I don't think I can take another spell like this," she said, her words seeming a little heavy. Frisk could agree to this, so she nodded. "And please take her with you." She gestured toward Fiona. "I think that you could keep her safe with that will of your's, and I think I've kept her apart from everything else long enough.

Before Frisk could agree to that was well, Fiona came out from her place in protest. "But... But I don't want to go!" she piped up, surprising both of the others. 

"What do you mean? Don't you want to go back to the surface?" Toriel asked, taken aback by how sudden this was. Clearly, she had been a very obedient child for the most part, so this would have to be a new thing. Frisk could see that being the case too, since she looked like the kind of girl who would agree to anything. 

"No! I want to stay here!" She didn't seem to want to move from this point at all, even if it would probably be the best thing for her. After all, did she really want to stay in a place filled with strange creatures for the rest of her life?

It was Frisk's turn to try something. She reached out a hand to Fiona, with the hope that maybe she could do a better job at this, since hey, she figured out what to do with Toriel. "Come on, you have to-" Before the sentence, Frisk was caught off guard by a cyan colored barrier forming around the girl, which brought her hand away. Did everyone in this place know how to conjure things up except for Frisk?!

"Just go away..!" Fiona said, with less force than she'd used before. It looked like Frisk had some convincing to do, but how?

This was a different playing field Frisk had found herself into.


	6. Child's Play

Frisk tried to reach out once again, hoping that maybe one more act might get Fiona out of this state. First, she tried to reach through the barrier, seeing as it had to be made of magic, since no one could bring up something see-through and make it hard to pass through. But, what she wasn't expecting was for her hand to feel a pulsing ache when she tried to touch the cyan fortress, making her jump back. Lost and confused, she looked to Toriel, who didn't seem to understand what was going on herself. That was the scary part of all this. If her own parent figure didn't know how to help, what chance was Frisk going to have?

Either way, she had to keep trying, for Fiona's sake, not just her own. She tried to touch it again, but before she could, something else took place. Everything changed, the same way it had two times before. A battle was about to commence.

* The childish war begins

This again? And so close behind the first as well? It wasn't as if the challenging party cared about that too much. I can't even tell if she knows that a battle has begun. Yet, it feels as it's one of the most climactic she's had yet. This time around, she tried something a little bit different. Instead of just using her mercy, she wanted to give acting a try. A hug and a smile probably wouldn't do her any good right now anyways, not until she's done something more.

After pressing that button, three other options appeared. To Check, to Talk, or to Touch? Well, she wasn't too sure if checking would do anything. And she's already tried touching the barrier, so that only left one object. To talk things out. That was a possibility, right? Thinking for a moment, she thought of some good words to say. "Why don't you want to leave? Don't you want to go home?" she asked, which was greeted with something back, but it wasn't exactly what she was looking for.

"I just don't wanna go!" Fiona cried, before something odd happened. The barrier was let down, and something special unfolded in front of Frisk. There was a small knife in her hands, which she deemed to be plastic by the looks of it, that she hadn't really noticed before this exact time. Instead in a few moments time, it went from looking like normal plastic, to gaining a cyan colored aura around it, similar to the color of the previously stated barrier. She slashed the knife at Frisk, and she tried to move away from it, to which she almost got away from, but ended up getting her arm cut by it. And oh man, did that hurt. The barrier was put right back up again, so she was still limited by the previous ways. But she wouldn't give up, not now.

She tried talking again, trying to see if she could break down the physical, and mental barriers she was putting up. "But why is that? Don't you have some reason why?"

"Because the outside's supposed to be scary! I don't want it to be scary!" The same sequence and attack came again, Frisk flinching and staying put instead of moving this time. To her surprise, this didn't get her hurt at all. So, did this mean the way to keep herself safe from these cyan attacks was to not move away, but to let them come? Now that was a good thing to do, maybe it would've been nice to learn it earlier though. 

Now that she had everything down, now she was ready to do this for real. Especially with the last statement, she knew what she was doing. This was about to get a little bit easier from here on out.

"You can't just stay in here forever though, can you? You have a family, right? They miss you, right?"

"But there's bad things outside, who'll hurt me! Mama said so..." Frisk shot a look toward Toriel, who didn't say anything about that statement. She'd have a few more words about this after this whole fight thing came to a close. 

"If there are bad things, then you won't be alone! I'll go with you, and you won't have to be afraid." Now this, this changed things quite a bit. Fiona's expression changed, as she grew silent. Was she realizing that things were going to be okay? The barrier around her dissipated for a final time, leaving the girl, crying on the ground. Everything soon went back to the normal way it was supposed to be, and Frisk quickly ran up to console the younger girl, bringing her into a tight hug. She accepted it this time, sobbing into Frisk's arms, saying things that were basically inaudible, and that probably aren't worth mentioning anyways. 

Toriel, finding it in herself that she could do something to help now, walked over to the two girls, kneeling down next to them. "My child, I am so sorry that I filled your head with these sorts of thoughts," she said. And in Frisk's opinion, she /should/ be sorry for warping the girl's mind like that. "Though the outside can be scary, I never meant it to bring you that much fear. And with Frisk by your side, I think that you will be okay."

"Y-you mean it?" Fiona asked, both of the others nodding in unison. "Okay. I guess I do want to go home- Maybe I should go-" That brought a light to Frisk's eyes. Though she hadn't really had the thought until recently, maybe it would be nice to bring someone home with her when, or if I should say, she got back up to the surface. And, to have someone to face the perils with as well. 

Once Frisk released Fiona from the hug, the goat woman soon brought them both back into one. "I will miss the both of you so much... But please. Leave this place before I change my mind-" she said, before releasing them for the final time. Frisk took Fiona by the hand, before waving goodbye. With tears still fresh in her eyes, she waved as well, and the two began their walk away from this place, and onto somewhere new. 

Though, before any of that could happen, they came face to face with someone familiar. Or should I say, face to flower. Yeah, I know I'm not funny. But anyway, here's Flowey, back again. Fiona hid behind the older girl, looking rather afraid. It seems like she's come close to him before as well. 

"Well, well, well. So you made it out of that place, huh? And with all of that diplomacy stuff too? Wow, I'm so impressed," the flower said, in a rather sarcastic tone. "You really think the rest of it's gonna be that easy? Oh, don't make me laugh. Those monsters out there are nothing like that lady. Soon, you'll realize, that in this world, it's kill or be killed. And you're what they want." Most of that was directed toward Frisk, even though it left both the girls nervous. "But hey, you could always start killing~ That would make everything so much more fun for me. But, before you tell me all of that stupid talk I know you'll say, I'll be leaving. For now, anyway." The flower laughed with a chilling mania, before popping into the ground.

Fiona looked toward Frisk, fear caught back into her eyes. It was obvious that whatever Flowey had said had gotten to her, and pretty badly too, so Frisk had to do something, or at least say something. "It's gonna be okay, I'll keep you safe, I promise."

"You really promise..?" Fiona asked, before Frisk nodded once again. With that, Fiona took a small breath before looking out toward the door that lead to the outside, for real this time. This was it. There was no more room for hesitation. The real struggle to get out of the Underground begins now. 

~~

RUINS ARC: E N D


	7. A Breath of Fresh Air

When they first got outside, it would be a lie to say they really liked what they saw. In fact, it was nearly the opposite. It was cold, very cold. The girls were lucky they both had something remotely warm on, or they might have frozen to death out here. Even still, this didn't feel pleasant at all, but they had to keep going anyway. At this point, they couldn't exactly turn back. They stayed close together, to keep warm as they went onward. But as they went, something felt creepy about this place. Something was off, and neither of them could figure out why they felt this way. It made Fiona even more inclined to go back, and Frisk more inclined to keep going, just to get out of here. Then, the creepiness increased when the two of them heard a sound behind them. "Wh-what was that..?" Fiona asked, gripping Frisk's hand with a newfound fear. They both looked behind them, to find that a stick had broken behind them.

And neither of them could have broken it. Even though both of their heart rates began to speed up, the only way they could go now is forward. They did so, quickening their pace so they could try and escape their pursuer, if there even was one, that is. They kept walking for a little bit longer, until they found a gate. And that gate was probably going to stop them, since they couldn't tell if they could squeeze through or not. And once they got there, they stopped, for more reasons than one. Soon after they caught sight of the gate, they heard the crunch of footsteps that couldn't have belonged to either one of them crunching on the snow, in a menacing fashion. A chill that didn't come from the cold of the area ran down both of their backs, as Fiona cowered behind Frisk, who tried to stay strong for the both of them as it kept getting closer and closer. 

Once it was close enough, it began to speak, which made things even worse for the both of them mentality-wise. "H u m a n s. Don't you kids know how to greet a new pal? Turn around and shake my hand." They weren't at all sure what to do. Well, Fiona planned to stay back behind Frisk for the most part, but she didn't know what the other would do here. Making a decision after a while, Frisk stuck her hand out toward the figure, which did the same for her. It was a bony hand that she felt meet her's. It was rather big too and it... farted? Oh, I almost forgot to mention. There was a whoopee cushion in his hand. How funny. At least Frisk seemed to think so, since she began laughing when it all went down. Fiona though, still seemed terrified by the whole event.

The figure, which had been shown to be a skeleton by this point, let out a chuckle. "Ah, the whoopee cushion in the hand trick, always a good one. Though by the looks of it, you didn't think it was all that funny," he said, looking toward Fiona, who didn't say much in response to that. It still seems she was rattled by the whole incident. "Oh well, guess I won't be tickling your funny bone today, kiddo. The name's Sans by the way, and I take it you two are a couple of humans? Guess I should be shipping you to the king. But eh, that isn't really what I feel like doing." That at least calmed Fiona down a little bit, enough for her to step out a little bit from behind Frisk. "One of my brothers though, Papyrus? Well, he'll be on your tail once he sees you, so that's something you gotta watch out for. Wait..." The skeleton paused for a moment, before looking off in a certain direction. "Oh, that must be him now. Don't worry though, there's a real good place for you to hide around here. Just go through the gate. It's wide enough for anyone to go through." 

Taking those words to face value, the girls stepped through the gate, that they realized wasn't as hard to get through as they'd originally thought. Sans went in behind them, and they all seemed to stop in front of a sentry post, with a lamp on either side of it. The kids weren't exactly sure where this excellent hiding spot was, so of course, Fiona was going to try and vocalize that. "So, where are we gonna hide?" she asked, though her voice was soft enough to go unnoticed. But surprisingly, he did hear it.

"Well, there. Behind those conveniently shaped lamps," Sans said, pointing to the lamps that, oddly enough resembled their body types rather well. Deciding not to chock it up that much, they each went behind one of the lamps. Once they did that, they were just in time to see another bone brother in action and... wait, was that another human behind him? On Frisk's closer inspection, it seemed that it was. Well, I mean, seven humans did fall down before her, it would probably make sense that more than one of them would survive the fall, even if the physics of it didn't make much sense at all. It was really best not to question it anymore at this point. Now, she needed to pay more attention to the conversation at hand here. 

"SANS! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN!" the one that she assumed to be Papyrus exclaimed, his voice rather loud for both of the girls' tastes, but they kept listening anyway.

"Looking for stuff in the forest."

"STUFF, LIKE WHAT?"

"Just the trees I guess? I dunno."

"UGH, THAT'S NOT EVEN THE WORST OF IT. IT HAS BEEN EIGHT WHOLE DAYS AND YOU HAVEN'T RE-CALIBRATED YOUR PUZZLES!"

"Jeez bro, it's like you broke your funny bone or something."

"ARGH! YOU AND YOUR PUNS WILL BE THE DEATH OF ME! I'M GOING TO GO AND WORK ON SOME TRAPS."

"Hey, Paps, do me a favor though and let the lil guy stay with me for a bit." He referenced the human boy behind him. 

Papyrus seemed a little bit against this at first, but then decided to go with it. "ALRIGHT, BUT IF IT'S ANYTHING LIKE THE LAST TIME SANS I SWEAR!" The taller skeleton then stormed off, leaving them all alone, the boy fidgeting a little bit where he stood, as if it were hard for him to stop moving. 

He then went up to Sans, looking a little impatient. "So what is it? Is it something to show me or what?" he asked, bouncing on his heels with anticipation.

"Well, yeah, it is. Hey you two, come on out," Sans said, gesturing to the two lamps, or at least that was how it looked from the boy's perspective. Though, they were a little reluctant on doing so, especially Fiona. But, Frisk, deciding to take the first move here, stepped into view from behind the lamp, the younger girl soon following suit. Seeing this, the boy's eyes lit up.

"WOAH!" he said, even though he was a little slow on the uptake. His face fell into a squint when he looked up at Sans. "What are they?"

"They're humans like you, can't you tell?" An audible sigh was released from the skeleton.

"OOOOOH. Oops, I guess I'm used to seeing those other kids from the other places so much I couldn't tell-" he said with a laugh, before shaking both of the girls' hands vigorously, with a beaming smile on his face. "My name is Elliot, and who are you guys?"

Frisk, realizing Fiona was starting to shy away from this again, realized that she was going to have to do a lot of the talking here. "Oh, my name is Frisk, and this is Fiona," she said, as the other girl waved meekly from her favorite spot behind Frisk. 

"Cool! So are you guys-" he was about to start rambling a little bit there, before Sans stopped him. 

"Hey, I'm gonna go on ahead, you mind taking them to Snowdin?" he asked. Elliot didn't take a moment before nodded, which made the skeleton's fixated smile grow a little bit. "Thanks kiddo, see ya." And with that, he kept on down the trail that led to who knows where. 

"Come on, you heard the guy! Let's go!" He soon grabbed Fiona by the arm, with just as much vigor as he had when shaking both of their hands, and started down the path with a running start, the smaller girl virtually being dragged along as if she were a rag doll since she couldn't keep up any other way. Frisk let out a small laugh, realizing that this was probably going to be a lot more fun than she'd originally thought, before going to catch up with them.


	8. Bone Filled Spectacle

Frisk kept chase to the high speed children ahead of her, even if she was beginning to grow tired. Man, this new kid seemed to have quite a bit of energy in him, it was hard for her to keep up. She was determined though, but that was nothing new, now was it? Finally, when it seemed impossible to go on, the boy stopped, leaving the girl trapped in his tow gasping for breath though she hadn't done any work. "I-Is it over-?" Fiona asked, trembling a little bit, though she was soon hushed by Elliot.

"Sh, we gotta stay quiet, I think I hear some people talking and I wanna listen..!" he said, even if he was basically yelling in a whispery voice himself. But once all the noise was silenced, it was true that there was a conversation going on in the distance, but one voice was distinctly louder than the other. Oh wait, it seems she already knows who the owners of those two voices. Most likely, it was the two skeletons again, and it took a moment for the other two to realize that themselves, even if Fiona wasn't the most audible about it. "Hey! I think that's Sans and Papyrus, so we're good! Let's go!" Thankfully, the smaller girl wasn't grabbed as he dashed off again, earning a sigh of relief on her end. Deciding that it would be in their best interest to follow behind, even if they probably shouldn't be around the taller skeleton if he was trying to capture them. Eh, who cares about all that logic? Irrational decision are cool. 

As the trio of humans approached the skeletons, they still seemed to be caught in mid conversation. "ALRIGHT, AS I WAS SAYING-" Papyrus had started to say, before he finally noticed the children standing before him. "ELLIOT! GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN! BUT ARE THOSE... OTHER HUMANS?" he pointed downward, toward the two girls. Before the boy could give an answer, Sans decided to cut in himself, and probably with good reason too.

"Pap, those are rocks." The statement caused all three of them to laugh a little bit, since there were, in fact, a couple rocks around their feet. The taller one let out a sigh and hung his head, not realizing that he had been played with on that front. After a moment, figuring out that he probably wasn't going to figure this out on his own, Sans spoke up again. "But they, there are a few right behind the rocks." This instantly caused Papyrus to shoot up again. Maybe he was where Elliot had gotten all of that energy from.

"MORE REAL LIFE HUMANS?! THIS IS AMAZING!" He had a moment of pure joy and excitement, before regaining a small bit of composure, even if he'd never had much in the first place. "NOW, YOU TWO ARE GOING TO BE IN FOR THE PUZZLES OF YOUR WILDEST DREAMS! YOU WILL BE JAPED! YOU WILL BE BAMBOOZLED! MARK MY WORDS!" He let out a few nyeh-heh-hehs before starting up speaking once again. "COME ALONG SANS, WE HAVE PUZZLES TO PREPARE! ELLIOT, GUIDE YOUR HUMAN FRIENDS TO THE PUZZLE AREAS TOO!" 

"You got it, bro," Sans said, once Papyrus had finally finished up.

"Right! This is gonna be awesome!" Elliot piped up, right before the two skeletons took their leave. "Hey, we should get going too!" 

"But... What about that puzzle stuff? Shouldn't we wait a little bit before we go-?" Fiona asked, even though the only reason she'd brought it up was the fact that she really didn't want to start running around yet again, and Frisk could definitely agree with that. 

"Yeah, I also have a few questions I want to get answered," Frisk added, since she had a few curiosities about all this. All of this seemed a little bit odd to her, and no, not in the 'talking skeletons' sense. She'd gotten over that a long time ago. At least I sure hope she has, because that would be an annoying thing to go through every time she went somewhere new, don't you think?

"Uh- I guess so. What's up?" Elliot asked, surprisingly lax about staying a little while longer, even if he was still moving around quite a bit. 

"Well, first I'd like to know how we're supposed to get out of here. And then, what kinds of puzzles are we dealing with out here?"

There was a brief silence, as if he had to think about this a little bit, where Fiona chimed in after thinking about what she was going to say longer than she really had to. "Are they scary?"

That took a bit more thought, even though he probably should know these things. He's been outside the Ruins' walls for who knows how long to be accustomed to this place, and those two skeletons. "The puzzles are really fun actually! I got to see a bunch of other kids do 'em too! They didn't really get hurt so it was cool!" he said, that last part making the girls sigh with relief, even though they'd probably disregarded the fact that he mentioned other kids coming down here at some point, which was probably important. "And how to leave? I guess you just go to the east till you reach town, then you're out. But why do you wanna leave so bad? You got stuff to do?"

"No, I meant, leave the mountain- Do you know?" 

"Nah, not really. I never got too far past Waterfall before, since being around here is pretty cool! Anything else? This question stuff is actually really fun!"

"I don't think I have anything else. How about you, Fiona?"

"No, I'm okay."

"Okay! Now, let's go then, it's this way to the puzzles!" Elliot soon took off in front, though taking a moment to let them follow, which was a nice touch, before trotting off some more. Frisk sighed, looking toward Fiona, who grew a bit nervous again, though she couldn't tell, and didn't know how to ask why. So she just comfortingly grabbed the girl's hand and carried onward through the snowy ground and trees that seemed to go on for worlds ahead.


	9. Town of Fairy Lights

Through the whole journey through the forest, Frisk had no clue if they were really going to make it out alive. It wasn't just the cold that made her uncertain, though it definitely didn't help, it was more of the monsters that stood watch over the place. Papyrus and his death defying puzzles, if you could call them that, definitely brought the group into their fair share of close calls. All the while, they'd had several encounters with a number of dogs claiming to be members of the Royal Guard, whatever that was supposed to be. Though Frisk wasn't fond of them, and Elliot wasn't even shoved in to most of these fights, Fiona was quite fond of them. Especially once she figured out that petting them would make them not want to fight. Why am I telling you all this instead of letting the story play out for itself? Because you've probably seen this all before, haven't you? I wouldn't want to bore you with all the fine details, now would I?

But anyway, despite all this, the trio finally made it into town. Feeling a bit rattled after that last puzzle, Fiona turned to Elliot. "Does this stuff happen every day?" she asked, almost looking pained, even though no one actually got hurt during the course of this.

"Uh, yeah, pretty much," the boy said nonchalantly. Well of course he'd be used to it by now. He didn't even seem to notice how worn out the other two were after this whole thing, and got right into looking around the place. "So, welcome to Snowdin!" He put his arms up, gesturing around the whole place and giving them a few seconds to look around the place. It seemed small and cheery, and definitely more forgiving than the forest surrounding it. "Alright, let me show you around!" As a call back to old times, Elliot grabbed Fiona by the hand again and took off with her, the girl whining as he did so. Frisk, with the hope that they wouldn't be going too long or far like this, went right behind the two of them as best she could. 

Their first stop was to the shop and inn, which weren't very far from the entrance thankfully enough, so she had a chance to catch her breath, even though his explanations were very short. It seems this one was very impatient with such things, though can you blame him? Literally, his only comment on the places were "This is where you buy stuff, and this is where you can sleep," while pointing to each respective building and moving on. He seemed excited enough as he went from place to place, though you could tell how many times he'd been around here by how fast he went around. Next up was Grillby's the bar and grill, then the Library (or Librarby as it was written there), and finally his and the skeleton's home. To be honest, Frisk thought the place would be bigger than it was, but oh well. "So, that's everything, I think! I'm gonna go to Grillby's now, but you guys can look around more if you want!" After taking his grip off Fiona's arm, he darted back the other way, while the girl's were left on their own.

"Um, Frisk?" Fiona piped up, after having stayed silent for the longest time. Frisk also seemed to realize that she hadn't tried to say anything during the little tour. Maybe because it was kind of fun watching Elliot bounce around as he did. But now that things had calmed down, she found it in herself to talk a little bit more.

"Yes, what is it?" Frisk said, bringing her attention down to the smaller one, who seemed to still be recovering from the whirlwind she'd been put through yet again. 

"Where do you wanna go now?"

"Well, I'll let you decide, since you have been getting dragged around a lot today." She let out a soft laugh, though Fiona wasn't the most amused

"Hm... I guess I'm kinda hungry. Can we go to that Grillby's place for something?" Though Frisk wasn't sure at first about the fact that it was a bar, how bad could the place be for her? She nodded, making the girl smile. The two began backtracking toward the grill. Once they were inside, the scene before them was a lot more welcoming and kid friendly than Frisk would've thought at first. Sure there were a few obviously drunk monsters in here, but the little one didn't need to know what that term even meant, let alone that some were getting to this state. And right at the bar sat Sans and Elliot, who turned around and gestured them over. Looking at each other for a second, they decided to go up and sit next to the others.

"Hey, I didn't think you'd come over here so fast," Elliot said, with his mouth full of what seemed to be some fries, though he was trying to shove even more in.

"Did you kids have fun with all of Papyrus' puzzles?" Sans asked, to which Frisk nodded, and Fiona tried to avert her eyes, unsure of how she was supposed to respond to that question. "Alright then, you kids want something to eat? It's probably been a while since you have, huh." Both girls nodded this time, to which the skeleton responded by calling the bartender over. Who was made of fire apparently? Yeah, they weren't going to question things like this right now, and neither am I. "Hey, uh, what do you kids want, anyway?"

"Fries for me, please," Frisk said politely. 

"I'll have some fries too," Fiona added right after.

"You heard them, Grillbz, I'll put their's on my tab." Little did these two know how big the skeleton's tab had become as long as he'd been coming to this place. Though the flame elemental didn't say anything about it as he went off to go and prepare their orders. Thankfully enough for the two of them, it didn't take very long for the orders to be ready and sat down in front of them. Such good service they have around here. Sans' glance went toward Frisk first, as a bottle of ketchup became visible in his hand. "Hey kiddo, want some ketchup on your fries?" Frisk nodded politely, as he squirted some on her food. Well, not exactly squirted in this case. More like the top came off, and all of the condiment had been poured out onto the fries. Aw, now look at this, it's ruined now. 

All Frisk could do about this was laugh it off, because it was a little funny, if this really was a prank. Fiona and Elliot, who were on either side of the girl, shared a look before simultaneously dipping their fries in the big glob of ketchup. What, we can't let it all go to waste! Though the skeleton let out a chuckle, he soon turned a little bit serious, looking toward the older girl for a moment. "So, are you planning on leaving the Underground to cross the barrier?" Though the change of air was a bit unsettling, Frisk nodded anyway, without any knowledge of where this conversation was going. "So, here's the thing, my bro's gonna try and stop you, and capture you right outside town. Could you go out there and have a little fight out there with him? But, don't hurt him when you do it." 

"I think I can do that much for him, it's only fair for all the fun we've been having," Frisk said cheerfully, which seemed to relieve the skeleton's worries. 

"Okay, thanks kiddo, I just don't want anything happening to him."

With that, Frisk thought that Fiona had probably eaten enough of her fill, so maybe it was time to try and fight the taller skeleton. There was a sizable dent in her fry pile, and she seemed content enough to continue on. "Hey, are you ready to go?" the older girl, looking at her little friend again.

"Yeah, I can go now," she replied, though the boy next to them seemed a bit disappointed. 

"Aw, are you guys leaving already?"

"Yeah, there's something we have to do around here," Frisk informed. And though he didn't seem thoroughly satisfied with that answer, nothing more was said on the matter before the two girls got up and walked out of the bar, and back to the outside of the snowy town. Apparently, since they were told to keep going east, that's where she assumed Papyrus would be waiting for them. So, without telling Fiona what they were doing, she carefully lead her toward the eastern edge of the town. 

Once they'd made it over there, it was hard to see anything because of a suddenly dense fog that coated the entire area. Funny, this wasn't around a few steps back from here. But even so, they continued onward, until they heard a familiar voice once again, someone they hadn't heard in a while. 

"HUMANS. ALLOW ME TO SHARE SOME COMPLEX FEELINGS WITH YOU," the one they could tell was Papyrus, even with the fog, said. "I HAVE SEEN IT THAT YOU TWO LACK SOMETHING VERY IMPORTANT IN YOUR LIVES. SOMEONE WITH A BOLD SPIRIT. SOMEONE WHO'S COOKING SKILLS ARE SUBLIME. SOMEONE TRAINING TO BE A PROTECTOR OF THE UNDERGROUND. THAT'S RIGHT, YOU ARE MISSING SOMEONE AS GREAT AS ME. BUT! THAT CAN BE EASILY SOLVED, SMALL HUMANS! FOR I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, WILL BE A FRIEND TO BOTH OF YOU... WAIT... NO NO NO! I CAN'T DO THIS! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE CAPTURING YOU BOTH AND TAKING YOU TO UNDYNE! BUT, AS A NOBLE HERO, I MUST AT LEAST LET YOU TRY AND DEFEAT ME. SO, HERE IT COMES!" 

Everything changed once again, as it always seemed to when the fighting began. The only thing that was different this time, was that Fiona's soul came out as well, which seemed to be a cyan color. But the two of them both had something more important to think about than the soul nonsense right now. 

* Papyrus blocks the way


	10. A Sentry's Duel

As the battle commenced, neither child was too sure of what they were supposed to do. Fiona had never fought a monster before, not for real. And Frisk, even though she was a bit more seasoned than her younger companion in the art of mercy during a fight, she knew that this skeleton in particular had a serious job to do, and didn't seem to be the type that got distracted easily like those dogs. So, this could prove to be a bit of a challenge, though that wasn't to say it was a bad thing. It might be fun trying to figure this whole thing out, at least for Frisk. Those four options appeared before Frisk, making her realize that she would have the first turn here. Well, it had been that way through most of the fights, so she was guessing that this was done on purpose, for whatever reason. She wasn't going to question it, she just planned on benefiting from it, for the most part. 

Now, since she had a little idea on what she could do next, Frisk picked the [ *ACT ] button, since the option would probably be there. Fiona didn't object, she just looked at the pretty buttons as Frisk chose. But there, the option came across that she was hoping to see. Flirt. You can already tell how this is going to end, don't you. I can't believe I have to narrate for this child of all the ones I could've gone with. 

Nevertheless, Frisk winked at her opponent, acting right on the spot. "Hey, er, you look really good in that scarf!" she said, going for the first article of clothing she could go for, since her mind basically went blank of anything else. Now, she remembered that she didn't have the best talking finesse in the world, and it was showing right about now. 

And, at the same time, there was Fiona, who didn't seem to get Frisk's plan. Don't worry kid, I don't get it either. "Um, Frisk? What are you doing..? Are you sure this is gonna help?" she asked, looking back at Frisk with a bit of concern and anxiety in her eyes.

"Of course I'm sure, this is gonna help us get out of fighting, I promise." Fiona, without anything else to believe at that point, just turned back to blindly believe in her friend, even if that was probably a horrible idea. But, somehow, it may have actually worked, due to Papyrus' newly flustered expression.

"WHAT?! FLIRTING? SO, DETERMINED HUMAN, YOU REVEAL YOUR TRUE FEELINGS FOR ME! THOUGH I THOUGHT SUCH FEELINGS WOULD BE RESERVED FOR THE ONE BESIDE YOU, I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I AM A SKELETON WITH STANDARDS!" the skeleton replied, making Frisk try to keep a straight face, while Fiona continued to be confused as ever. Right after the last sentence was spoken, two more options appeared before the duo. * I can make spaghetti and * I have zero redeeming qualities. And I think it's obvious which one they're going to pick- And, nevermind, Frisk just picked the second option. I feel like she's just trying to get herself killed at this point. 

But, even so, that still seemed to work on the skeleton before them. "SUCH HUMILITY. YOU REMIND ME OF MYSELF, BOLD HUMAN! YOU REMIND ME OF MYSELF WHICH... MEETS ALL OF MY STANDARDS! NYEH! WE SHOULD TEACH YOUR FRIEND THERE HOW TO BE SO GREAT." He pointed at Fiona, who froze on the spot, looked at Frisk, and started shaking her head no. It seems she was afraid of Papyrus, and for what I would think to be a good reason. "AND EVEN SO, DOES THIS MEAN WE'RE SUPPOSED TO HAVE A DATE? WELL, WE CAN ALWAYS DO SO AFTER YOU'RE CAPTURED!" 

Did Frisk just sign herself up for a date? I guess she did, and knowing her, she was probably going to follow through with it. But, there was still a battle that had to commence, and commence it shall. There were bones, that were basically going all around the two children. They didn't even have to move to dodge them all. So, onto the next turn, where for once, Frisk didn't do anything stupid. She just went with her mercy this time around, which was a good enough choice. 

"SO, YOU WON'T FIGHT, EH? THAT DOESN'T MATTER, BECAUSE I STILL HAVE A SECRET WEAPON, MY BLUE ATTACK!" That blue attack seemed to be similar in nature to a lot of Fiona's magic attacks. If you stayed still, as the girls were doing, the attack wouldn't hurt at all. What sort of attack is this? Well, they were soon to find out, as after that had ended, a strong sense of gravity enveloped both of their souls. As Papyrus let out a confident "NYEH HEH HEH," one thing became clear. 

* You're blue now

Another bone, a white one, had flown in and knocked both girls off their feet, causing them to get hurt a little bit. Frisk began testing out what they could do like this. She could jump, but she, and her soul, would always fall down again after trying to do it, but softly and slowly enough to not cause any pain. She soon realized, that if the attacks were going to be anything like the other ones, being bones, Fiona would probably have a harder time dodging, due to her smaller size, and probably lower jumping capabilities. So, Frisk knew what she had to do. She scooped up the smaller girl in her arms, and prepared for her next set of merciful acts, without much protest on Fiona's. I guess Frisk can be a comforting mom too?

As the battle went on, she kept on showing her mercy, and every set of attacks was dodged well enough, with a few scrapes here and there. Papyrus continued to talk about how great he war, or going to be, kind of like a narcissist. But Frisk wasn't going to judge, since he did seem to have a good enough heart. There even began talk of a 'special attack', which neither of them took too seriously, until it was about to be unleashed, with a rousing cry of "HERE COMES MY SPECIAL ATTACK!" And I mean, it might have been somewhat intimidating to anyone other than Fiona if it wasn't being eaten by a small white dog. "HEY! SPIT THAT OUT! THAT'S MY SPECIAL ATTACK, YOU DUMB DOG!" Despite his words, the dog simply ran away, leaving Papyrus to let out a sigh. "FINE, I GUESS I'LL JUST USE AN AMAZING REGULAR ATTACK..." Then, the bones started coming, and they were pretty high up this time, though Frisk was somehow making a very long jump across everything, even the ones that spelled out "COOL DUDE," or the giant groups of bones at the end. It left both the girl, and the skeleton winded. "IT... IT IS CLEAR TO ME THAT YOU CAN NOT DEFEAT ME FOR I... HFF... THE GREAT PAPYRUS... WILL GIVE YOU MY PITY..!"

* Papyrus is sparing you

Frisk instantly took this opportunity to spare him, bringing everything back to the way it was supposed to be, before she put Fiona down, and watched for what Papyrus did next. 

"ALAS, I CAN NOT EVEN CAPTURE SOMEONE AS WEAK AS THESE TWO HUMANS... NOW, MY FRIENDSHIP COUNT WILL REMAIN STAGNANT..." 

"Oh, we should be friends then!" Frisk chirped, earning a look from Fiona, who still didn't trust their boisterous opponent. 

That made the skeleton beam. I guess she actually can say some smart things sometimes "REALLY?! SO QUICKLY, I'VE HIT THE FRIEND ZONE WITH THIS ONE- NO MATTER, WHO KNEW ALL YOU HAD TO DO TO MAKE FRIENDS WAS MAKE SOMEONE SOLVE PUZZLES AND THEM FIGHT THEM? I NOW GRANT YOU BOTH PERMISSION TO PASS! JUST KEEP GOING FORWARD FROM HERE, AND YOU'LL REACH THE BARRIER SOON ENOUGH. ALSO, FEEL FREE TO COME OVER FOR OUR DATE!" With that, the skeleton left the two girls alone to only stop and stare for a while, until Frisk decided to speak up.

"Hm, I think we should really go on that date-"

Fiona blinked, looking surprised at her choice. I mean, didn't they have places to go? "U-um, are you sure we should do that? I mean..."

"Don't worry, there's no reason to be scared of him, he seems harmless. And if you want me to, I can hold your hand while we're over there." This reassured the girl beside her, who was already reaching over and squeezing her hand. Fiona nodded, though she didn't look all that happy about this. After that nod of acceptance, Frisk led the way back over to the home of the skeletons, which they'd remembered due to their quick tour of the place earlier. Though, she did wonder how this whole dating thing was going to play out, even if she didn't see this as much of a date. It should probably be fun, with someone as wacky as that.


	11. Love and War

Once the duo got to the home of the skeleton brothers, it seemed a lot more normal than either of them had been expecting. In fact, it looked like just a normal house, which I guess they'd expected to be more boisterous due to how Papyrus was at all. But you'd probably need a little help for that, and who knows how the others living here would want the atmosphere to look. Speaking of Papyrus, he seemed to be ready and waiting at the door for them to arrive. It was almost sad to see how excited he was for a date with an eleven year old girl. Before either of them could get a better look at the place, Papyrus went right over to them. "HUMANS! IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU'VE COME FOR OUR DATE. I THINK YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TAKE A LOOK AROUND, SO HAVE AT IT!" he said, before giving them a chance to take a breather. Soon enough, Fiona went right to the couch, even though Elliot, who neither of them had seen yet, seemed to be occupying it already. Frisk, thinking it would be a little rude to just sit over there without permission.

Once they came over, however, he seemed pretty surprised to see them. "Woah, hey, what're you guys doing here?" he asked. "Papyrus said he was going on a date today, so I dunno if you guys should be here right now." I guess he hadn't gotten the word that it was Frisk who was the lucky kid, if you could call her that, who was going on this date. Either that, or her was too dense to realize it.

"Actually, I'm the one going on that date!" she cleared up, which left Elliot basically beyond comprehension. Though that would make a little more sense since she's what, eleven years old. Is she even old enough for this? I mean, I guess she didn't really find this to be a serious date, but that isn't the point.

"Really?! Guess that makes sense though, I don't think anyone else around here is into dating and stuff, and you seem kinda weird with that lovey stuff," the boy said with a shrug. I mean, he wasn't wrong, and the way he said it just made Frisk laugh a little bit. 

"I guess I am then, but flirting was kind of fun, I'd totally do it again." Though, that probably couldn't even be considered flirting, that was just a poorly planned compliment, but it wasn't like anyone needed to know about that, at least Elliot didn't have to. "Anyway, maybe we should go over to Papyrus about that date. Come on, Fiona-" Though, it seems the smaller girl was no longer next to her, and it was just then that she figured out where the other was, which was right on the couch, fast asleep. Aw, she looks so peaceful, it would be best not to wake her. "Nevermind, I'm just gonna go, see ya!" With that, the girl left the two younger kids behind, and went to talk to the skeleton once again. 

With a tap on the shoulder from Frisk, the skeleton turned right around. "OH, IS THAT ALL YOU WANTED TO SEE? THEN, I GUESS WE CAN HEAD UP TO MY ROOM NOW, IF THAT'S WHAT YOU WANT," he said, while Frisk eagerly nodded. The girl was almost curious to figure out what was going to happen in there. "ALRIGHT THEN, UP THE STAIRS WE GO!" He soon grabbed the girl's hand and rushed with her right up the stairs. 

The room itself was also a lot different than she'd though it would look. Honestly, it looked like any standard eight year old boy's room. Heck, it even had a race car bed in it. Without saying a word, the girl just began looking around the place, trying to get a better look at everything. Though, she didn't find much in there that she wanted to ask about, even if the dog biscuits were a little questionable. So, she just decided look back up at Papyrus. "Hey, so you wanna start the date now?"

"OH, OF COURSE I AM, HUMAN!" he replied. And then, for whatever reason, things began to feel the same as if they were about to enter into a fight or something.

* DATING, START

"ACTUALLY, THIS IS MY FIRST TIME GOING ON A DATE, BUT, DON'T WORRY, HUMAN! I HAVE THE DATING RULEBOOK FROM THE LIBRARY, SO WE'LL BE VERY READY FOR THIS. STEP ONE, TURN ON THE DATING HUD" And would you look at that, it seems a button for that has appeared in the act section. The one that you use to turn it on, to be exact. So, she wasted no time in pressing it, and a whole menu appeared. And most of these things here didn't even seem all that relevant to a date. I mean, some of these things had to do with population, and crime rates? There was even an egg setting! What even is all this?! "WOWIE, I FEEL SO INFORMED! SO, THE NEXT STEP IS TO ASK THEM ON A DATE... SO DO YOU EXCEPT MY REQUEST TO DATE YOU?" Frisk swiftly nodded, though her answer should have probably been obvious. I mean, didn't he already ask this question earlier? Well, anyway, it seems that Papyrus' eye sockets lit up with excitement at her answer. "R-REALLY? WOWIE! NOW, ONTO STEP THREE!" He seemed to be examining that book with a very intense expression. "WEAR NICE CLOTHES TO SHOW YOU CARE! WAIT... WEAR CLOTHES..." He's giving this way to much thought. I swear, if he says what I think he's going to say, I'm about to lose it. 

"THAT BANDAGE YOU'RE WEARING... YOU'RE WEARING CLOTHES RIGHT NOW!" Talking about the bandage, instead of anything else that she had on, like her sweater or something? Honestly, I should be expecting it at this point. "SO, DOES THAT MEAN... YOU'VE WANTED TO DATE ME FROM THE VERY START?!" At that point, Frisk was at a loss for words. Of course she hadn't been planning this from the start, but was she actually supposed to say that? Hm, it would be better not to lie to him, so she shook her head. And this made the skeleton gasp. "NO? SO DOES THIS MEAN... YOU ONLY WANTED TO BE FRIENDS?!" Now, that was a little debatable, but she decided to nod at that. "WELL... THAT WAS NOT TO BE EXPECTED BUT, YES! I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS, SHALL BE YOUR FRIEND!" Ah, well, at least that was a little bit relieving. Though, Frisk had to admit this short date was kind of fun. "OH, ONLY ONE DATE... AND I'VE ALREADY HIT THE FRIEND ZONE-..." 

Oh please, I'm pretty sure he was in the friend zone since the very beginning, even though Frisk was way too nice to admit it. But then, the highlight of the day really began. From outside the room, the sound of an incidental trombone played, with the sound of laughter accompanying it, which made both Frisk and Papyrus turn their attention toward it. Well, that certainly made them both curious, who could even be playing that? They both went out to investigate, where they soon saw both Sans and Elliot outside the door, it that Elliot was down there, howling with laughter seemed and that Sans had played the instrument... somehow..? It was best not to question it. But, it seems Papyrus wasn't all that happy about this. "SANS! WHEN WILL YOU STOP PLAGUING MY LIFE WITH INCIDENTAL MUSIC?!" he cried, which made the human boy's laughs even louder.

"Aw, come on, Paps, that was good," Sans said, before an all out verbal argument ensued. Frisk took that opportunity to move out of the way for this. She didn't think it was the best thing to stay around for, but once she went down the stairs, it seems she was being followed by none other than Elliot himself, who soon stopped her. "Hey!" he exclaimed, which made her turn around. "Since they're up there doing whatever, you wanna have a fight? Not like a killy fight, but like, a match?" Well, that was a little to the point, but at the same time, it couldn't hurt, could it? So, deciding that it probably couldn't hurt, she nodded. And once again, she felt the way she always did when a fight was about to begin. And then, now, it's time for the next fight. 

* Elliot prepares for battle! 

Now, usually we'd stop here for the battle in another chapter, but we're going out of Snowdin with a bang, so we're making this pretty long. I mean what? Anyway, now seemed like a good time to act, because of course neither of them were really trying to kill each other. So, that's what she did, and what came to mind was either the smartest or the dumbest thing she'd come up with all day. She decided to try and go in and tackle him, though without the force necessary to hurt the kid. He looked pretty tough anyway, so it was probably fine. And anyway, he seemed to be thrashing about with that. Though, he couldn't exactly fight in the normal style like that, so, already, this was turning into a very light wrestling match instead of the usual fights. He usually tried to be a little more violent than the girl when he was fighting, but it was probably on accident. But this went on for quite a while, until it was abruptly stopped by some shrill yelling, from someone we're all probably familiar with. 

"ELLIOT! DIDN'T I TELL YOU THAT YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO FIGHT IN THE HOUSE AFTER THE LAST TIME?" Last time? The fact that there was a last time is pretty concerning, but she decided not to say anything. I mean, she had been kind of losing once Papyrus interfered, so I guess this was probably a good thing. It got the boy off of her, so it was definitely fine.

"Aw! But I was just about to win!" he whined, before getting up and brushing himself off.

"BUT THEN YOU WON'T BE IN TOP CONDITION FOR WORK, AND THAT ISN'T GOOD!" Again, it probably was for the best. Before any of them actually got hurt, even if it was just playing. Elliot was grumbling about it for a little while, though his cheerful demeanor was quick to return, after he soon got an idea. 

"Hey! So, where are you and Fiona gonna head after this?"

"Hm, oh, we're leaving Snowdin, since we want to get out of the Underground," Frisk replied, smiling lightly as her eyes went toward where Fiona was sleeping. She would probably have to wake the other girl up soon after this.

"Woah, cool! Can I come with you?" Now, that left her at a loss for words. That was a very sudden request, to say the least. But as she thought about it a little more, she realized that there would probably be some benefits of having him help. As she'd seen, he was definitely strong for just being a kid, and he probably knew a little more about the Underground than her or Fiona did. Even if he did seem quite a bit wild and reckless, what would be the harm in that?

"Sure! It'll be fun to have someone else going with us," she replied with a chipper smile. The boy cheered, with a grin on his face. It seems she made the right choice there. But now, after all of this, it was time to get going. And, time to try and wake the sleeping girl. Going over to the couch with Fiona still on it, she lightly poked the girl a few time to try and get her to wake up. But, once that didn't work, Frisk grew a little bit impatient. So, deciding that it probably wouldn't hurt, she slung the younger girl onto her back, and motioned to Elliot. "Alright, let's go."

With that, they began to go. Away from Snowdin Town, and to somewhere new. None of them could know what could happen next, though, I'd like to say that before all this, none of them would really want to know just yet.

Now, that would ruin the surprise, now wouldn't it?

~~  
*SNOWDIN ARC: E N D


	12. Prologue Two: A Promise Kept

"So, she said they're making their way to Waterfall? How many of them?" 

"She said there were two at first, but the one taking residence in Snowdin has decided to join them, so it seems."

"Hm..." It seems a boy and a girl had been standing there, the girl starting to pace a little bit. You could swear she was nervous about something due to her expression, but why? "Are you sure she said one of them had... it?"

"Yes, when I went over, I even saw it for myself. Though it was strange, that was the only thing that was special about the soul."

"Really? I guess we expected a bit much out of it before we actually saw what someone with that trait could do." A moment of silence was shared between the two. Things were tense, and neither of them could understand why. Clearly none of them were in mortal danger, so what could be the problem? "Say... What are you going to do if you come across them? Would you really harm any of them?"

"Of course not! I never have, but- I can't be sure what I'll be ordered to do when it comes down to it."

"Surely the captain wouldn't make you-"

"Wouldn't she..?"

This cause another period of silence between the two. She knew how desperate everyone, including the captain of the Royal Guard herself, had become when it came to getting out of the Underground. Heck, even she felt as if they might never get out of here, as much as she wanted to feel the suns rays on her face again. At the same time though, she didn't want anyone's life to be lost, especially not at the hands of someone she knew. She'd never be able to live with it. "Please, no matter how much I want to get to the surface, it's not right to kill. Not like this..."

"Okay, okay, fine, I won't kill them." He seemed unsure of himself as he said this, and she was quick to make note of it.

Her expression dropped it's worry, and grew cold. "Give me your word."

"What-?"

"I said give me your word. I want you to promise me that you won't kill any of them, no matter what you're told to do. I... I just want to make sure."

Their faces seemed to match in their intensity for a moment "Fine, you have my word. I will, however, still capture them, and bring them to Undyne. After that, it is out of my hands."

Though that wasn't the response she'd been hoping for, she let out a sigh and nodded. "Okay, that's good enough." Her expression lightened into that of a small smile, just to wash away the intensity between them. Thankfully, that seemed to work, since you could feel a wave of relaxation come from the both of them.

"I'd best be going then, she'll be mad if I'm not in position by the time they get here." He shook his head, with an awkward laugh escaping from his lips before he began walking off. 

Truly, this was where things would begin to get... interesting.


	13. Our First (Real) Enemy

It was strange to see how much warmer it got once the three of them had left Snowdin. I mean, it wasn't as if the place was hot or anything, but it was just hard to think that they were just in a place covered with ice and snow a few moments ago. Not that they were complaining or anything, it was just strange. But, with the change of scenery, there also came a change of atmosphere. It wasn't like if they were entering the scene of a fight, it was just oddly tense. And it was putting all three of the kids on edge, for reasons that they couldn't understand. The fact that none of them were talking just made things even worse. The only sound for a few minutes was the sound of the water rushing around the place. Yes, it was very silent between them, until they caught sight of what looked to be another kid. A monster child, albeit, but still, a kid nonetheless. "Hm, should we-?" Frisk started to ask, before Elliot just zoomed ahead. The two girls exchanged a look with each other, before following right after him. 

Once the four of them had met up, the new kid gave them an excited looking grin. "Yo, are you guys sneaking out to see her too?" he asked. You know, a normal person would try to ask what he meant by "her", but at this point it was much too tedious to ask. At this point, they realized that they would probably meet her soon anyway. So, to be polite, Frisk just nodded a long, and pretended for all three of them that she knew what he was talking about. "That's awesome, she really is the coolest lady around! When I grow up, I wanna be just like her, don't you?!" Without thinking, the three of them nodded, unsure of what else they were supposed to say. "Alright, I'm going up ahead to see if I can see her, but don't tell my parents I'm here!" With that odd encounter out of the way, the children now just wanted to figure out who the heck he was talking about.

"Um... Who's the she?" Fiona asked, mostly looking toward Elliot for the answer. I mean, he's been down here long enough to probably have some idea, right? Even if he'd never been to Waterfall before, it's not like it would hurt to ask, right?

The boy thought for a moment, trying to think of whether or not he could think of something. "Hm... I dunno, it might be this one lady Papyrus talks about sometimes. He says she's pretty cool, and her name is... Undyne, I think?" he replied. Well, that was a better help than they thought it would be, so hopefully he'd be right. Maybe she'd be nice too, like Papyrus and Sans were. 

Well, we'll just have to find out about that, now won't we.

As the kids began to walk again, they offered a wave toward the sentry station, where Sans was sitting. Yeah, they just weren't going to question that as usual, so they just kept on moving, bringing about that quiet tension once again. But this time, it felt stronger. And none of them could really explain why. Well, that was until they reached an area of tall grass. When they entered the tall area, it felt even worse. Almost as if there were eyes on them that they couldn't even see. It turns out they were right, because the first time that Frisk decided to take a look up, she saw two figures standing above them on a ledge, peering downward at the grass below. Frisk's eyes widened when she saw this, and she quickly whispered the word "Hide!" as she got on her knees under the safety of the grass, pulling the other two down with her. 

"Hey! What was that fo-" Elliot began to say, before he was hushed by Frisk, and you could hear the sound of footsteps that almost sounded... familiar. The trio looked up to watch in bewilderment, as they saw it was none other than Papyrus who had come up to join those two figures. 

"H... HI UNDYNE! I'M HERE WITH MY REPORT!" the tall skeleton said, as the taller of the two turned a bit to face him. So it seems Elliot was right on the naming part, but that made them wonder more about her, and wonder even more about who the smaller one was. "UHH, REGARDING THOSE HUMANS I CALLED YOU ABOUT EARLIER..."

"Did you fight them?" the voice of a woman asked, though it was much harder to hear from all the way down there. 

"DID I FIGHT THEM..? O-OF COURSE I DID, VALIANTLY EVEN!" Though he was still as loud as usual, the children had to wonder. Did he seem nervous while he was talking to her? Because to them, it almost sounded like it. 

"Good, and did you capture them?" 

"UMM, YES! YES, OF COURSE!" Now that part just made them even more confused. How could they be captured if they were standing right here? Something didn't seem right about all this. Though, it was all cleared up once they saw they second figure turn, and begin to speak.

"You know, it isn't good to tell lies to the captain," the voice of a younger male spoke, almost as if he was teasing. 

"Hm? What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, earlier today, I saw some of the camera footage from the lab. And it seems that he hadn't captured either one of them. To me, it almost seemed as if he was making friends."

"Papyrus." The woman's voice grew sharper. "Let me ask you again. Did. You. Capture. Them?"

"AHH, ERR, UMM... NO-"

"WHAT?!"

"I TRIED TO CAPTURE THEM, I REALLY DID! BUT THEY'RE CHARMS WORKED TOO WELL ON ME, SO I FAILED..." 

"Ugh! I can't believe this! Fine then, I'll capture the one myself! And I'll destroy the other!" Since they could tell that she probably didn't mean Elliot, due to the fact that he'd apparently been known about the Underground for some time now, the two girls looked to each other, with fear and panic shining through on their faces. Neither of them wanted to be captured. Neither of them wanted to be destroyed. 

"BUT YOU SEE, YOU DON'T HAVE TO DESTROY THEM, OR CAPTURE THEM BECAUSE-"

"Papyrus, listen. With that red soul, and the new power of the cyan one. We can go to the surface once again, and leave this place, don't you get it?!"

There was a moment of silence. So... it was Frisk who had to die. It was hard to hear, and she was scared, but she'd have to stay silent. 

"...I UNDERSTAND. I WILL TRY TO HELP IN ANY WAY I CAN," the skeleton said after a moment. 

"Good. Now go. I have work to do." He gave a quick nod, before leaving the area, the room filling up with quiet tension once again. It only took her a moment for her to turn toward the one with her. "Now, we have to prepare. Let's go." He offered a stiff nod, before they both started to go off, away from the ledge above the tall grass. But even as this happened, and they probably hadn't been spotted, Frisk could have sworn that the boy had been glaring down at her as they left. 

After this, all the kids just looked at each other, frozen in place. While Elliot was a little more calm, Frisk and Fiona were terrified. They could possibly die because of all this. The smaller girl looked up at her friend with pleading eyes, as if she just wanted everything to be okay, and who knew if it ever would be? Only one thing could be assured now.

This wasn't all fun and games anymore.


	14. The Road to Disaster

"And, I think we did it this time!" Frisk exclaimed, as she put the last bridge seed where it was supposed to go. And would you imagine that? It seems that she was right, since the flowers all bloomed in a line, allowing the three children passage through the lake. Because it would be so terrible if they were to get wet or something. Oh, and why didn't I tell you of these children's struggles to get the seeds like that in the first place? Well, you still really don't want to hear about that nonsense, do you? If you did, well that's just too bad I guess. Anyway, as the children walked across the bridge of flowers, a phone began to ring. Now, at first, Frisk thought that it would be her phone that was ringing, and maybe Toriel had wanted to talk with her for a little bit. That would be nice, but we all know how terrible she is at answering the phone, so the chance of that happening was pretty slim, and of course, it didn't. In fact, it was actually Elliot who had to pick up the phone. So who knows what this could be about.

"Hey, who's this?" the boy asked, as there seemed to be a pause. Frisk and Fiona decided to be quiet as this whole conversation played out, since who knew who would be at the end of that line. "Oh, hey! ... What are they wearing? Um... Yeah, I think that was it! Uh-uh... Yeah, I will! Okay, bye!" Well, at least all of that was short enough to not drag on. Now that it was over though, now the girls wanted a few answers.

"So, who was that?" Frisk asked, deciding to cut right to the chase, since it would probably be good to know why they talked about what they were wearing, assuming the they was her and Fiona. 

"Oh, it was Papyrus! He was asking what you guys were wearing for a friend. I dunno why, but I guess there's probably a reason," he said with a shrug. I'm not sure if Fiona had realized it just get, but it seems Frisk had tensed up a bit at that. Even if the friend wasn't really specified, she knew that both Elliot and Papyrus were pretty naive to this sort of thing, so if her suspicions were correct, this might not end well. 

"Ah, alright let's... let's keep going then-" Frisk replied, even though now she was a little bit nervous to. Even if they could walk right into a trap, and the possibility of that happening had grown a bit with that information, they would get nowhere if they just sat here doing nothing. 

Though Elliot didn't seem to catch it, as they started to move forward a bit, Fiona tugged on the older girl's sleeve, looking a bit concerned. "Um, are you okay, you look scared..." she commented, causing Frisk to sigh. 

"Don't worry, it's probably nothing," she replied, with a semi-reassuring smile. And even if Fiona wasn't the most sure about this now, they just kept on walking through the wetlands. And for a while of their walk, the most interesting thing was just some quiche that was left out, and that Frisk had decided to pick up, even though it was probably really old. Really Frisk? Really? Anyway, all of that boring scenery changed soon enough once a few blue flowers came into view. They were very big, just about as tall as Frisk was, making it a wonder as to how they could even grow down here. Either way, it wasn't the only interesting thing about these flowers. In fact, after being in this room, she could've sworn she heard someone speaking, as she turned to the other two. "Did either of you say anything?" That was returned with a shake of both their heads. How odd... Now what could it be?

The source was soon found, coming from the flowers themselves. They seemed to be repeating something, each of them doing something different, but what was the meaning to all of this? 

"Wait, I think I know what this is!" Elliot piped up after a moment. "Sans told me about these one time, they're called Echo Flowers, and they repeat something that they heard!" Now that was something new. Why weren't any of these on the surface, because that would be the coolest thing, at least to Frisk. 

And it seems that Fiona felt the same way too, as she went to listen to what the first flower in the room had to say, without saying a word as to not disturb it. "I think they used to make wishes over here," she said as she looked back toward the others. "Cause it said something about how they couldn't wish up at the sky anymore..." 

It was almost saddening for Frisk to hear this. Just how long had these monsters been down here, and how long ago had the message been recorded. This made her wonder about it for a moment, before realizing that with this stop, they should probably keep on going. "That's nice, but do you think we should keep going. We don't know when Undyne's gonna come back, right?" she pointed out. And though you could tell Fiona had wanted to stay a little bit longer, both of the children nodded before they walked toward the exit of the room, though trying to listen to the messages along the way. 

Though I have to say those flowers were nice, what lied in the room ahead of them, after figuring out how to open the wall up of course, they went toward the next room, which seemed to be a bridge with lots of plaques on them. Now, this had the whole group curious about them. What did they say? Well, I guess it was time to find out.

Frisk strode up to the wall. The words on the first plaque at least seemed really hard to make out, but she should at least try to understand, and read it to the others. "I think I'm gonna try and read these, okay?" she asked, before turning to them, who seemed to have no disagreements with this. "Okay, it looks like this first one says something about "The War of Humans and Monsters"..."

"War..? I didn't know there was a war-" Fiona piped. 

"I didn't either, but maybe we can learn about it from this..." And with that, she went to each panel, she continued to read. About how human SOULs were stronger than monster SOULs. And how there was one advantage that monsters had, that they could take a human soul and become a powerful beast. As the one shown right on the last panel. It was frightening, so much so that Fiona had to go and squeeze Frisk's hand for comfort, as they wondered what they'd gotten themselves into. But they had to be strong. To get out of here. 

After seeing that image, the three were silent for a while, before Elliot decided to break it. "Hey, you think we should go?" he asked, though as he said that, something seemed to catch Frisk's eye. Was it a sparkling star, right beside them? What was this doing here? This isn't even a regularly scheduled save point! Well, trust me, you'll understand soon enough. But now, Frisk wanted to see what this one did. Sure, she'd seen these before, but only now did she really want to pay attention to it. Even if they had to go, maybe she could look at it for just a little bit longer, and see what it did.

"Um, just a second, I want to check something," she said, leaving them confused, but not giving any more detail. She then looked at the yellow star in front of her, with all of the curiosity and wonder in the world on her face. After taking a look at it for a little while, she decided to reach out and touch it, just to see what would happen. After doing so, she could feel something strange within her. Was it excitement? Anticipation? No... the best word for it had to be determination. But enough of all that. Maybe she should try and get back to the others, since she'd left them in the dark like that. Once she did, though they looked very confused, she didn't give them a clue as to why she'd just been standing there like that, and said, "Okay, let's get going then!" With a shrug of both of their shoulders, they nodded and continued on. 

After taking a very small raft over to another part of the bridge, you could just feel the tension rising in the air. What happened? Why did it feel as if something bad was about to happen? Well, that question was soon answered, as they noticed two new figures appear. Well, they weren't truly new. It was the two armored figures from when they'd first arrived at Waterfall. And they'd really been spotted this time. Oh no. A spear had been thrown that way, and even though it missed, only one thing came to mind as Frisk let out a shout. "RUN!!" 

The chase was soon on, as the three began to run, and a ton of spears were thrown at them, with at one point, a sword coming into the mix. Though a lot of them were dodged, it seems that there was one that they weren't truly paying attention to. And it was headed straight for Fiona, right as Frisk realized it. 

But she wasn't going to let that happen. Wordlessly, the girl jumped right in front of her friend, taking the brunt of a spear attack right to her chest. 

Oh no.

As the spear went right through her, the last thing that she saw were two faces, one surprised, and one filled with sheer horror.

* You cannot give up just yet...  
* Chara...  
* STAY DETERMINED


	15. Nothing, Yet Everything

The place that Frisk woke up in was unlike what most people would imagine to see after they'd died. Some expect to see the pearly gates of heaven, others expect the fiery pits of hell. For most, it should probably be the latter, but whatever. Though most people wouldn't be expecting to see what Frisk did. This place looked as if there were nothing there. Inky blackness for miles and miles around. But that wasn't entirely true. For one thing, there were two buttons that were right near her. Oh, and I was there too. Who am I, you may be asking? Well, you'll figure that out soon enough. Now, let's get back to the story, shall we?

When she had finally awoken, surprisingly, her eyes didn't go toward the buttons like I thought they would, but they went straight to me. I found it odd, but maybe I should just see where she's going with this. "Um, hello- Do you know where this place is..?" she asked. I could sense the fear in her voice. It was odd to me why she would be scared of this, since there wasn't anything out here to be afraid of, except maybe me, but that doesn't matter. Though I never thought I would have to explain this to a newcomer, I guess there's a first time for everything. 

"This just so happens to be the void, stranger," I replied. I know, I already know her name, but who cares. It might be fun to mess with her for a little bit. You people don't know how horribly boring the void is, so I have to do something to keep myself entertained, other than just watching Frisk go around, even if it can get a bit fun to see sometimes. "I didn't think I'd see anyone else besides that strange man here, but it seems I was wrong." Though I don't think I know that guy's name, I'd see someone pop around here from time to time. Ah well, he really isn't my problem.

I could tell that what I was saying didn't ease Frisk at all, in fact, she looked even more tense than before. "The void? But how would I get to a place like this?" Ah, what a naive girl. Like she didn't even remember what had just happened right before she came. It was almost sad, but oh well. She'll learn soon enough.

"If you're in this place along with me, I can only think of one reason why. You're dead." At those words, she froze. Either I was immune to the theme of death, or Frisk was just being a big baby about it. Either way, maybe I should tell her about the fact that she can cheat death. In a minute though, I just want to see how this plays out first.

"I-I'm dead?!" she asked, increasing in terror and volume with every syllable. "Wait... That's right, back with those spears earlier. I really did die, didn't I-?" After that whole bit she fell silent for a while. Now that was seriously disappointing. Just like most people I suppose. But I guess now would be a good time to just go out with her and talk about how she can reset and all that. I mean, I'm pretty sure she can since she used the star back there, and she has a soul that's a lot like mine.

"Well, you don't have to be dead forever, you know? I mean, I'm pretty sure you don't have to be," I said, which brought her attention to me, with a sudden hope plastered on her face.

"Really? Can I really go back? How?" 

"It all depends, really. When was the last time you saw a SAVE point?" Now that threw her for a loop. It was like she didn't even know what a SAVE point was. Well, I guess she wouldn't know since the only other one who could use them is a flower who didn't seem all that helpful, so it made a little sense now that I thought about it.

"SAVE... Point..? And what is that exactly?" I sighed lightly. This was going to be a long day. If this was even going to take a day, that is. 

"Ugh, it's like, a golden star thing that makes you feel determined. When was the last time you saw one of those?" It was clear I was frustrated, and while Frisk realized that, she also saw what I was talking about.

"Oh, do you mean one of those? Well, I think the only one I ever really noticed was the one at the end of those history plaque things." Again, I already knew that from watching her, and it was pretty stupid that she was so confident she wouldn't die up until then, but as you can tell, I've made it a point to shut up about these things. 

"Good, so there's hope for you yet." I then pointed toward the two buttons that had been in the room this whole time. Though I find it hard to believe that she hadn't even tried to see what they did, it was almost as if she was pretending they weren't there. "You see those buttons? Those can actually give you a chance to go back to where you last went to one of those stars. Well, one of them does that. The other one makes it so you have to start from the very beginning of the Underground."

Frisk went up to the buttons, looking over them both. One said continue, and the other said to reset. It was pretty obvious which did which, and at least she was gravitating toward the continue button. At least I would have to explain that like everything else. "Will pressing this button really take me back?" 

"Yep. If it doesn't, well, at least there aren't any witnesses if you want to punch me." I laughed at my own joke, though Frisk didn't seem to find it funny. What a stick in the mud. It took me a little bit to realize how pressed she was about this. Did she really care about those two kids and going home that much? Well, if she wanted to so badly, I guess I should probably tell her more about it. "You should probably be careful not to die too much. Though for most, it'll seem like time is going normally, there are some who can actually remember what happened before you went back. So yeah, try not to run into those people." I mean, I think I noticed one of them were actually there with her when it happened, but I could've just imagined it so don't credit me on that

Though my warning almost shook Frisk a little bit, she nodded soon afterward. "Alright, I'll try to remember that-" She then went to press the button, with all of that in mind. I guess I didn't care much that I was going to be alone again. I always had the way to see what was going on, and I think I had enough of being up close to Frisk for a while. But she stopped for a moment, right before she was about to press it. "Wait, I don't think I ever asked for your name, mine's Frisk."

Though I made her wait a while, I finally came out with it, hoping that she wouldn't mention this to anyone else, though it couldn't exactly affect me anymore. "My name is Chara."

And with that, she offered a nod before she pressed the button, and disappeared into the blackness.

* Continue

Frisk soon appeared right back where she'd last saved, with Fiona and Elliot looking back at her, the smaller of the two looking a bit concerned. "Um, you've been looking down like that for a while," she said, looking rather concerned.

"Yeah, are we gonna go now, or what?" Elliot added, crossing his arms. So I guess it really had worked, and neither of them remembered a thing. At least she wouldn't have to worry about them remembering she died. I'm not sure how either of them would take it, but I think it would be pretty fun to watch. 

Either way, she nodded, looking back toward the other two. "Yeah, let's get going," she said, before going back to the boards again. But she had to wonder now. What did she have to do differently this time? Even if it might take some thought, the answer might just be easier than you think.


	16. Fixing Mistakes

Frisk had almost made it the whole way to the same boardwalk where Undyne was waiting for them before she got an idea to make sure no one died or got hurt this time around. Well, at least she hoped this would be a good idea, because we all know that these ideas aren't always the best. And anyway, since she knew that she could turn back the time now, there was a chance to make mistakes here, right? So right as the group almost made it to the spot where they first needed to run, Frisk turned back toward the others, and to Fiona in particular. "Hm, you look a little tired, Fiona. Do you want to get on my back?" she asked, causing the smaller girl to get a little confused. I guess she wasn't all that tired from walking, but of course the reason Frisk was really asking was for something completely different, though of course you all probably know what it is, so there's no reason for me to tell you.

And thankfully enough, the girl wasn't opposed to not having to walk, so after giving Frisk a small nod, Frisk put her right on her back, for a nice little piggyback ride. Well, it wouldn't be nice in a few seconds. Thankfully enough, she probably wouldn't have to worry too much about Elliot, since he seemed fast enough, though he wasn't paying too much attention to that whole talk. 

"Are we gonna go yet or not?" Elliot said after a moment, seeming to grow a bit impatient. I guess I can relate though, these kids really need to get going soon. Frisk nodded soon enough, and once again they were moving along. And just as planned, the two figures showed up to try and hit them once again. Though just before the first spear had been thrown, Frisk couldn't help but notice a change in the second figures positioning. Almost as if he were confused, but that didn't matter once that spear almost hit them. Time to get moving again I guess, let's just hope that no one dies this time around. 

Almost finding it fun to do this again, with the hope on her side this time around, Frisk let out the same shout once again. "RUN!!" And once again, the chase was on. Thankfully, with the lesser amount of people to run, it was a little bit easier to dodge. And since Elliot was dodging well enough on his own, even if it seemed he wanted to fight more than running away, Frisk was just worrying about herself and Fiona for now, and it was definitely working better now that they were basically operating as one machine. She'd probably have to help the smaller girl calm down a little bit after this though, because she had looked deathly terrified the whole way along.

This kept going on for a while, until the group came across a whole patch of sea grass. Oh! Maybe they could hide in here. Without asking about it, or saying anything, Frisk went right into the grass, Elliot getting wind of this and following right after them. But this time, it seems the grass couldn't protect them, because Undyne was making her way right in. But this time, something else seemed to save the children from the clutches of being caught. 

Once Undyne had reached in, it seems instead of grabbing one of the kids, she grabbed another familiar face instead. Wait... Was that Monster Kid? It seems it was, and thankfully enough she put him right down afterward, and walked away. So that was easy enough. After that whole scare, the group walked right out of the grass, and as did Monster Kid, who had quite a lot to say about that. "Did you guys see that? Undyne just... TOUCHED ME!" he exclaimed. I mean, I guess he didn't have to worry all that much about getting hurt, since it didn't seem like the fish woman was too keen on hitting anyone who wasn't a human. "I'm never watching my face ever again..! Man, you guys are so unlucky. If one of you were just standing a little bit to the left..! Yo, don't worry! I'm sure we'll see her again!"

"Yeah... S-sure..." Fiona said, definitely looking nervous about the prospect of getting into another run in with that scary lady. Yeah, Frisk should probably try to get her calm again like we said before. So as Monster Kid decided to get himself going again, Frisk decided that now would a good time to do that. 

She soon let the little girl off her back, and began to talk. "Don't worry, it's going to be okay," Frisk said with a smile, as she patted Fiona on the back. Even then, it didn't seem to help all that much, which was a little bit disheartening. She couldn't think of anything else she could say, which wasn't all that great, but at the very least Elliot could think of something. 

"Hey, Frisk's right you know. If we see that lady again, I'll punch her for ya!" he said, with a small grin on his face, while giving her a playful punch on the shoulder, though it hurt a little bit more than he'd intended her to, which caused Fiona to rub her arm a little bit. But she smiled all the while, so I guess that did help a little bit. 

"Thanks you guys, but do you think we should keep going?" the smaller girl asked. Frisk nodded, and soon enough they were off once again. 

After a bit more walking, with a quick check of one of those stars near a crystallized piece of cheese along the way, and a whole lot of strange encounters, they seemed to reach a statue with a light shining over it. There was a little bit of rain coming onto it as well. Where did the rain come from, anyway? I mean, who knew where it was coming from anyway? Maybe it was hole that was bringing rain from the surface? As Frisk thought about it for a moment, she soon thought of something else, that now that I think of it was really stupid, but I guess she wasn't the only one who had it come to mind. 

"That statue looks really sad and wet there-" Fiona said. "Do you think that we should get it an umbrella?" Oh please. Even if that was probably the dumbest thing ever, both of the older children seemed to agree with her statement. Though Frisk was kind of starting to realize how strange that sounded, she wasn't about to crush these kid's dreams. 

"Yeah! Maybe there's gonna be one around here!" Elliot said. "Let's go look for it!" And with that, the boy was back to his old tricks of racing off to go somewhere else. With the older girl letting out a sigh, the two of them went right after him. 

Almost as if it were fate, it seems there actually was a whole basket full of umbrellas in the next area, that were just free for the taking. I mean, wasn't this just the biggest coincidence ever. Either way, it was Elliot who grabbed the umbrella, since he was the first to come in here. "Wow, why do you think they have so many of these?" he asked.

"I dunno, but do you think that we should give it to the statue..?" Fiona asked.

"I mean, it wouldn't hurt to try, so let's do it!" Frisk replied, starting back toward the statue, with the other two children in right behind her. Elliot seemed to waste no time in putting that umbrella right over it, and something that could definitely be seen as unexpected happened right afterwards. 

Right as the umbrella was placed, a song began to play from the statue. It was a nice song, and it filled the children with a sense of calm. I guess it was sort of familiar to me too, like maybe I'd heard it at some point. Maybe I'm reading too much into this though. Either way, it was an even better way to try and calm down after... recent events. Even Elliot seemed to mellow a bit at its sound. It almost seemed to be a good way to find more motivation to keep going along. And after a while, that they did, with the fond memory of the serene music in mind as they did.


	17. Death Defying

"YO! How COOL would it be if UNDYNE came to school!" Ah yes, it seems we're going right back into a long rant about how cool Undyne is from Monster Kid, much to the dismay of the other three children, since all four of them were walking together. Though it only seemed that Fiona was visibly uncomfortable with this, the others weren't exactly the most happy talking about her. Heck, it took Frisk all she had to keep Elliot from trying to punch the monster on the torso or something. But they kept going with him anyway, mostly because Frisk thought it would be rude to just ditch him or something. Ah, her kind heart is almost as annoying as that monster sometimes. 

Either way, even if the others were pretty disinterested in the topic, Monster Kid just kept on talking, without even thinking about how anyone else felt about it. They were oddly quiet anyway, Frisk only nodding a few times at what he had to say, while Elliot just let out a few disinterested "uh-huh"s and "yeah"s to make it seem like he was listening. Well, at the very least, it was a little bit better than what Fiona was doing, which was just trying to pretend that she didn't exist for a bit.

But soon enough, it seems that the group had come across a pretty high ledge. And while it seemed Elliot wouldn't need too much help in climbing it, since she was quite a bit taller than the others, it seems that they might need a little bit of help to get up there. So as the tallest of the group propelled himself onto the ledge with his hands, Monster Kid had an idea for the girls.

"Yo, you guys wanna see Undyne, right? Climb on my shoulders, I think then you can get over the ledge!" he suggested. And while Fiona seemed to be rather skeptical of this, Frisk just kind of took the idea and went right up there. It didn't seem to hurt him much, so with that, and a flinch, Fiona followed suit. Once they were on the ledge though, though Frisk had an idea at first on how to get him up there too, she realized soon enough that it wasn't going to work. After all, you'd probably need hands for what she was thinking to do, which was something that the monster didn't really have. 

But at any rate, even if she probably wasn't ready to deal with another wave of his endless speeches, mostly about Undyne, she didn't just want to leave him here. That was rude, even if the other two probably weren't going to say anything about it. "Hey, don't you need any help getting up either?" she asked, getting on her knees just in case there was something she could try to do here. 

Surprisingly, the monster shook his head in reply to that. Wasn't he the one who wanted to come this way to see his "hero" in the first place? "No, you guys go on ahead. Don't worry about me, I can always find a way through!" he said, valiantly before dashing off. It almost would've sounded inspiring had he not proceeded to fall on his face, causing Elliot to snicker as the monster got himself up and left. 

"I thought he'd never stop talking about the scary fish..." Fiona mumbled. Though she didn't seem to stay on that too long, mostly because it was over now, and dwelling on their adversary wouldn't get them anywhere. So, while taking the young monster's advice, they continued onward. And what awaited them seemed much too familiar to Frisk, but she just couldn't place it. She couldn't place what her issue with all of this was, but she decided to be cautious anyway. 

More ancient writing was on the walls, and while Frisk was tempted to walk away, at the same time her curiosity struck. She had to know what it said. Soon enough she ushered the others over toward her, as she went to read the writing. But let me tell you, it was even more chilling than the first set that they'd seen. 

"The humans, afraid of our power, declared war on us. They attacked suddenly, and without mercy... It could hardly be called a war. United, the humans were too powerful, and us monsters too weak. Not a single soul was taken, and countless monsters were turned to dust," Frisk read aloud, having to move over a little bit just to see what the plaque to the right read. Though a part of her regretted reading all of that now, and it seems so did Fiona, though Elliot was just unaffected by all of that. Sometimes, I think that kid is too brave to be aware of anything being wrong.

A heavy silence hung in the air after reading it. She never knew that humans could do all of that. Was this why the monsters needed her to die so badly? It was hard to take in, but something soon distracted her from all of the gloom. That was the presence of another save point. Knowing that it could come in handy later, she touched it, and tried to get moving from here. After all, there was no reason to stay in all of this gloom for that long. In a moment though, they'd realize that it might have been a good idea. Why would I say something like that? Well, that was because everyone's favorite guardsfish, and her loyal sidekick had come back around. Super.

They had spotted her once they had stepped onto yet another bridge, this one seeming to have another bridge below it, for some reason. It was only apparent to them though, when they saw a variety of spears shoot up from the ground, along with what seemed to be a magical replica of a throwing knife. Oh yeah, they were back. "RUN!" Frisk shouted once again, before the three of them began to speed off, though it was a lot harder than that this time. Now they had to dodge all of these magical weapons, having to stop every once in a while to do so. While that was easy enough for Fiona to do, since she needed a few stops to catch her breath anyway, it seems that the older two were having a harder time with it. 

But soon enough, there came to a point where there were two ways to go. What were they supposed to do now? With what I can only think to be rushed thinking, Frisk had come up with a below average plan. She pushed the two younger children toward one of the pathways, before letting out another shout of "SCATTER!" before going the other way, without realizing that there were two of them they were up against. Great job Frisk, five stars. At least it lightened the fire on both parties, since Elliot and Fiona decided to go with this plan and head the other way. 

After that, the only thing that was on Frisk's mind was staying alive. Even if she could just go back and try again, she didn't want to end up having to repeat this over and over again. After all, this running was tiresome. Soon enough though, she reached a wider area, that she thought would mean she was home free, but that was wrong. Quickly, she found herself at a dead end, only noticing it when she almost took a step onto it. Great, now she was trapped. This couldn't get any worse! Wait nevermind, it just did, because Undyne had then jumped up to the part of the bridge where Frisk was, making her more trapped than she had been before. 

Instead of getting speared right there though, she instead threw her spear right into the bridge, which at first, Frisk thought to be a dumb move. It was proven to be smarter than she thought, however, once that made the bridge give out, which made her plummet to what she thought to be her next demise. 

In the distance, or maybe it just sounded as such, a quiet voice from the past could be heard.

"It sounds like it came from over here..."

"Oh! You've fallen down, haven't you..."

"Are you okay?"

"Here, get up..."

"..."

"Chara, huh? That's a nice name..."

Though soon enough, that voice melded into another, that seemed a bit closer by.

"Hey... Hey kid... Are you alright?"


	18. Claire de Lune

"YO! How COOL would it be if UNDYNE came to school!" Ah yes, it seems we're going right back into a long rant about how cool Undyne is from Monster Kid, much to the dismay of the other three children, since all four of them were walking together. Though it only seemed that Fiona was visibly uncomfortable with this, the others weren't exactly the most happy talking about her. Heck, it took Frisk all she had to keep Elliot from trying to punch the monster on the torso or something. But they kept going with him anyway, mostly because Frisk thought it would be rude to just ditch him or something. Ah, her kind heart is almost as annoying as that monster sometimes. 

Either way, even if the others were pretty disinterested in the topic, Monster Kid just kept on talking, without even thinking about how anyone else felt about it. They were oddly quiet anyway, Frisk only nodding a few times at what he had to say, while Elliot just let out a few disinterested "uh-huh"s and "yeah"s to make it seem like he was listening. Well, at the very least, it was a little bit better than what Fiona was doing, which was just trying to pretend that she didn't exist for a bit.

But soon enough, it seems that the group had come across a pretty high ledge. And while it seemed Elliot wouldn't need too much help in climbing it, since she was quite a bit taller than the others, it seems that they might need a little bit of help to get up there. So as the tallest of the group propelled himself onto the ledge with his hands, Monster Kid had an idea for the girls.

"Yo, you guys wanna see Undyne, right? Climb on my shoulders, I think then you can get over the ledge!" he suggested. And while Fiona seemed to be rather skeptical of this, Frisk just kind of took the idea and went right up there. It didn't seem to hurt him much, so with that, and a flinch, Fiona followed suit. Once they were on the ledge though, though Frisk had an idea at first on how to get him up there too, she realized soon enough that it wasn't going to work. After all, you'd probably need hands for what she was thinking to do, which was something that the monster didn't really have. 

But at any rate, even if she probably wasn't ready to deal with another wave of his endless speeches, mostly about Undyne, she didn't just want to leave him here. That was rude, even if the other two probably weren't going to say anything about it. "Hey, don't you need any help getting up either?" she asked, getting on her knees just in case there was something she could try to do here. 

Surprisingly, the monster shook his head in reply to that. Wasn't he the one who wanted to come this way to see his "hero" in the first place? "No, you guys go on ahead. Don't worry about me, I can always find a way through!" he said, valiantly before dashing off. It almost would've sounded inspiring had he not proceeded to fall on his face, causing Elliot to snicker as the monster got himself up and left. 

"I thought he'd never stop talking about the scary fish..." Fiona mumbled. Though she didn't seem to stay on that too long, mostly because it was over now, and dwelling on their adversary wouldn't get them anywhere. So, while taking the young monster's advice, they continued onward. And what awaited them seemed much too familiar to Frisk, but she just couldn't place it. She couldn't place what her issue with all of this was, but she decided to be cautious anyway. 

More ancient writing was on the walls, and while Frisk was tempted to walk away, at the same time her curiosity struck. She had to know what it said. Soon enough she ushered the others over toward her, as she went to read the writing. But let me tell you, it was even more chilling than the first set that they'd seen. 

"The humans, afraid of our power, declared war on us. They attacked suddenly, and without mercy... It could hardly be called a war. United, the humans were too powerful, and us monsters too weak. Not a single soul was taken, and countless monsters were turned to dust," Frisk read aloud, having to move over a little bit just to see what the plaque to the right read. Though a part of her regretted reading all of that now, and it seems so did Fiona, though Elliot was just unaffected by all of that. Sometimes, I think that kid is too brave to be aware of anything being wrong.

A heavy silence hung in the air after reading it. She never knew that humans could do all of that. Was this why the monsters needed her to die so badly? It was hard to take in, but something soon distracted her from all of the gloom. That was the presence of another save point. Knowing that it could come in handy later, she touched it, and tried to get moving from here. After all, there was no reason to stay in all of this gloom for that long. In a moment though, they'd realize that it might have been a good idea. Why would I say something like that? Well, that was because everyone's favorite guardsfish, and her loyal sidekick had come back around. Super.

They had spotted her once they had stepped onto yet another bridge, this one seeming to have another bridge below it, for some reason. It was only apparent to them though, when they saw a variety of spears shoot up from the ground, along with what seemed to be a magical replica of a throwing knife. Oh yeah, they were back. "RUN!" Frisk shouted once again, before the three of them began to speed off, though it was a lot harder than that this time. Now they had to dodge all of these magical weapons, having to stop every once in a while to do so. While that was easy enough for Fiona to do, since she needed a few stops to catch her breath anyway, it seems that the older two were having a harder time with it. 

But soon enough, there came to a point where there were two ways to go. What were they supposed to do now? With what I can only think to be rushed thinking, Frisk had come up with a below average plan. She pushed the two younger children toward one of the pathways, before letting out another shout of "SCATTER!" before going the other way, without realizing that there were two of them they were up against. Great job Frisk, five stars. At least it lightened the fire on both parties, since Elliot and Fiona decided to go with this plan and head the other way. 

After that, the only thing that was on Frisk's mind was staying alive. Even if she could just go back and try again, she didn't want to end up having to repeat this over and over again. After all, this running was tiresome. Soon enough though, she reached a wider area, that she thought would mean she was home free, but that was wrong. Quickly, she found herself at a dead end, only noticing it when she almost took a step onto it. Great, now she was trapped. This couldn't get any worse! Wait nevermind, it just did, because Undyne had then jumped up to the part of the bridge where Frisk was, making her more trapped than she had been before. 

Instead of getting speared right there though, she instead threw her spear right into the bridge, which at first, Frisk thought to be a dumb move. It was proven to be smarter than she thought, however, once that made the bridge give out, which made her plummet to what she thought to be her next demise. 

In the distance, or maybe it just sounded as such, a quiet voice from the past could be heard.

"It sounds like it came from over here..."

"Oh! You've fallen down, haven't you..."

"Are you okay?"

"Here, get up..."

"..."

"Chara, huh? That's a nice name..."

Though soon enough, that voice melded into another, that seemed a bit closer by.

"Hey... Hey kid... Are you alright?"


	19. The Cotton Swing

* Mad Dummy blocks the way

At this point, it was Frisk's turn to make a move, but she wasn't quite sure what to do. Though, since it seemed like the right thing to do at the time, and since the elder girl seemed to know what she was doing, as if she'd had to fight it before, she decided to ask Claire for a little bit of advice. "Hey, what do you think I should do? Should I try to talk with it or what?" she asked. After all, what else could she do, since she didn't want to fight it. Especially since doing that could mean a lot of things. 

"The best idea during your turn is to not do anything at all," Claire suggested. "Like, show some mercy for now, and then I'll show you what to do next." Frisk softly nodded in response to that, deciding to take her word for it and hitting the spare button. 

"Foolish. Foolish! FOOLISH!" the dummy began to yell. "Futile. Futile! FUTILE! Feeble. Feeble! FEEBLE! Pitiful. Pitiful! PITIFUL!" After all that shouting, Frisk was left in a confused state. After all, what had warranted all that. Was it her showing of mercy, or was he just screaming to scream at that point.

Right as the dummy's attack was beginning to come about, Frisk turned back to her older friend, hoping that she had a plan for this too. Thankfully enough, that was the case, as Claire held out her hand to the determined girl. "Before this starts, do you trust me?" she asked, which although she was a bit hesitant at first, she nodded in response, as Claire took her hand, and began to dance and twirl around when the attacks came out, which were strangely in the form of strange balls flying at them. Though, even if they seemed to follow them, the girls just kept moving about in a way that would do a good job at dodging those attacks. And once the turn was over, the dummy seemed to get hit instead, and was not happy about it. 

"OWWW! You DUMMIES! Watch where you're aiming your MAGIC attacks!" it shouted, as the gears began to turn in Frisk's head. Though it seemed to realize its mistake soon enough. "Hey! You! Forget I said anything about MAGIC!" Chances are, they probably weren't going to forget, especially since Claire had probably had this plan in mind the whole time. 

"Wait, so is your plan to let it get hit with the magic attacks while we move out of the way?" she brought up, even though it was probably very obvious by this point. Jeez, Frisk, learn to take a hint for once. 

"Of course it is, so now that I've showed you, how about you show me what moves you got on your own this time," Claire suggested, a playful grin on her face. With a simple nod from Frisk, the mercy button was hit once again, which started off what could only be described as a dancing contest that saved their lives. Both of them showed impressive moves, and didn't seem to get hit no matter what the dummy threw at them. Or, really what the multiple smaller dummies were throwing at them, since the original just seemed to be complaining the whole time like a weenie. But every time, even after he began to replace the first set with robotic dummies, nothing seemed to phase them, which obviously didn't make this dummy happy at all. 

After a while, it was fed up with everything going wrong for him in this fight, which put Frisk on the edge. "Who cares. Who cares! WHO CARES!!" it shouted, causing Frisk to jolt, yet prepare herself. "I DON'T NEED FRIENDS!! I'VE GOT KNIVES!!!" And then, a knife first floated right beside it, before going out toward the both of them, even though it was very easy for them both to maneuver out of the way. While both of them were actually bracing for the next attack, what it said next was enough to make them snicker a bit. "I'm... Out of knives."

"Really, is that all? Frisk, we should get going now," Claire said in a haughty tone, believing that with this, they'd already won this petty game. Though, even that wasn't the case, which was a pretty good lesson in why we shouldn't jump to conclusions so fast, Miss Know-It-All.

Before Frisk could respond to that in any way, the dummy began to speak once again, with it's same level of agitation as before. "NOT SO FAST! JUST BECAUSE I CAN'T ATTACK DOESN'T MEAN IT'S OVER! BECAUSE YOU CAN'T HURT ME, AND I CAN'T HURT YOU!"

"Hey, that's not true, right? We could still attack if we wanted to," Frisk protested, before she began to look a bit confused with her own statement, as she looked up at Claire. "...Right?" 

"Actually, that's right. You see, the reason we tried to make sure that it got hit with it's own attacks was because it can only be hit with magical attacks such as those. Anything we can do to it won't land a hit," Claire explained, making Frisk grow pale with worry.

"EXACTLY! YOU TWO DIMWITS WILL BE STUCK FIGHTING ME... Forever. Forever! FOREVER!!!" it yelled with a sickening amount of glee as it laughed maniacally. Well, at least until what looked to be raindrops began to fall from the sky, that looked like they were hurting it. Was it some sort of magical attack? But where was it coming from, Frisk wondered. "Wh... What the heck is this!? Acid rain!? Oh, FORGET YOU ALL, I'm outta here." And while it mumbled a few curses under its breath, it began to float away, which made a sigh escape both of the girls' lips. Though they weren't sure who to thank for this at first, their hero soon began to float down. And they were revealed to be some sort of ghost. Wait, Frisk had seen that ghost before! While she couldn't say much to them since Toriel had quickly ushered her away, she did want to say hi to them. 

Once they came down though, they seemed a bit nervous about what had just gone on. "Oh... Sorry, did I interrupt you? As soon as I came over, your friend left... And you were probably having so much fun too... I just wanted to say hi, since I've seen both of you guys around before and you seem super nice- oh no........." they said, not leaving a lot of time between all that for interjection from either of them, until now of course. 

"Oh, it really wasn't any trouble at all, Napstablook. You actually saved us from a fight back there, so thank you for that," Claire courteously said, a reassuring smile coming to her face, which sort of made the ghost more comfortable? I guess?

"Really? Well, I guess I should head home though... Feel free to um, "come with", if you want- B-But you don't have to, only if you really feel like it- I just wanted to offer is all-" After that whole awkward speech, they disappeared, looking rather nervous about all that.

"You think we should go?" Frisk asked, even though she hadn't thought about it at all before she asked. 

"Well, I'd think it would be a good idea. After all, he is rather lonely. I'd feel bad if we just skipped out like-" While Claire had begun to speak, a new voice, or rather a familiar one, rang out. 

"HEY! I THINK I SEE FRISK!" a voice yelled out, that Frisk identified to be Elliot's. And a second later, both him and Fiona, who had been forcefully dragged along by her arm so she could keep pace again, appeared before the other two. "Hey! Sorry we took so long. She was being a scaredy cat over going down those rocks!"

"B-But it was so high, I didn't wanna fall-" Fiona wheezed, staring at the ground. "Are you okay though, that looked really long-" For the last part, she looked toward Frisk for an answer, who gave a nod in reply. 

While that probably wasn't the best explanation for all that, especially since Claire's mother instincts were kicking in there, and made her shoot a glare at Elliot over making that poor kid do things she didn't seem particularly happy with doing, she decided that it would probably be best to get going, and at least explain a few things to the other two on the way. "Alright then, so shall we be going then?" she asked.

"Hey, why are you saying that? Who're you?" Elliot asked, seeming a little ticked off that this random girl that he may or may not have seen before was trying to give him orders, but Frisk was quick to intervene. 

"I'll explain on the way, we have somewhere important to get to, now let's go!" Frisk said, trying to usher everyone along before any sort of fight broke out, since that was something that she really didn't want to happen right now. And since they were now moving at a fast enough rate to satisfy the boy, at least for now anyway, the group began making their way over to the home of the ghost.


	20. The Friendly Ghost

Four sets of footsteps resonated through the cave walls as Frisk, Fiona, Elliot, and Claire all made their way up to the house of Napstablook. Even if Elliot had been complaining the whole way to getting there, it was still the least that this group could do, since he'd essentially saved both Frisk and Claire's lives back at the dump. Though the only way they could get him to stop was by promising that he could run ahead once they were done with this date. A terrible idea, I know, but at least it made him shut up, so why would they care?

Anyway, once the group finally made it over to the place, they didn't waste time in going right in. Well, Elliot didn't anyway, since he rushed right in, probably hoping for this whole ordeal to be over with quicker. And since it probably would be pointless to try and knock now, the girls just followed him in with a sigh. When they did, the ghost didn't seem the least bit mad at them for barging in like any reasonable person would. Yet he did see surprised to see that they'd actually come at his invitation, as if it had never happened before in his life. 

"Oh... You guys really came... And you brought friends too? Sorry, I guess I wasn't expecting you to do that..." he said, seeming to glance over the group. "It's not much to look at, but you all can make yourselves at home... If you wanna listen to some tunes or something..." Though, even as that was being said, Elliot just rushed over to the fridge once he noticed it.

"Hey, do you have some food in here? All that bridge stuff made me hungry!" he chirped, surprisingly not yet rummaging through it of his own will. 

"Uh, sure... I can get you a ghost sandwich, one moment..." the ghost replied, floating over to the fridge and getting the sandwich out, though none of them decided to question the fact that he got it out without having arms. The boy then tried to grab and eat it, but it ended in failure, as he phased right through it. I mean, what else was he expecting? It's called a ghost sandwich for a reason, idiot. Anyway, once that happened, the ghost seemed rather embarrassed that he screwed this up so badly. "Oh... Nevermind..."

"Aw..!" Elliot whined.

"Oh, don't worry about him, it's fine. We can eat later," Claire interjected. 

"If you say so..." Napstablook said, seeming unsure of himself there. "But after a meal, I like to lie on the ground and feel like garbage... It's a family tradition- Would you like... to join me..?"

"N-" Elliot began to say, before getting completely cut off by Frisk. 

"We'd love to!" she chirped, making the ghost seem the slightest bit happy for once. 

"Okay um... Follow my lead then-" the ghost replied, as he laid down on the ground, the four children following suit, although Elliot was a lot more reluctant about it than the other kids. "Here goes... You'll lie down as long as you don't move, so when you wanna get up, move I guess..." So they all lay perfectly still, staring up at the ceiling.

It was perfectly quiet for ten whole minutes, even Elliot didn't stir for that whole time. They all seemed to be learning something about the universe from all this, it was... odd. But, as it didn't surprise anyone, the boy was the first to speak up out of any of them.

"This is boring..."

"Oh, be quiet, you can get up soon-" Claire hushed him.

"Mmm, I don't think it's boring. I guess I feel really good-!" Fiona added.

"Whatever!" Elliot said, as he got up. The girls decided to wait for another five minutes, before doing so themselves, and at least to those three, it felt like a good experience. 

"Well... that was nice... But I think I'm gonna work on my mixtape some more..." Napstablook said, as he got up himself. 

"Alright, we probably should be heading out. It was nice that you let us hang out here for a bit!" Claire called out, as she started to round the children up. After all, this play date was nice, but we do need to get back to the action, don't you think? 

"Okay... Bye then..." And with a final farewell, the group went onward, though trials with so much peril! So much action! Like... talking to a turtle about history, and... learning more about creepy history- Jeez, what is it about this place and history? Anyway, Claire soon began to lead them to somewhere a small bit off course, although it was a stop that she knew well. 

"Hey, where are we going?" Frisk asked, starting to grow unsure of all the twists and turns they were taking, especially since they were going somewhere that looked hidden away. Finally, she's actually concerned about the things that matter here, even if it wasn't for good reason.

"Ah, just trust me here, I know what this place is, and I think it'll be a good pit stop on the way to the end of Waterfall," she replied, as she began to step in, beckoning the younger children to follow her in. Fiona and Elliot were quick to follow, and while Frisk was a little bit more reluctant, she soon went in along with them. And what she saw was no shortage of... interesting. 

A whole bunch of creatures that you couldn't tell if they were cat or dog were spread about the area, going through menial tasks of the day. Well, that was until one of them caught wind of the newcomers, and shouted "HOOMANS!" before running up to them, the rest of the townsfolk doing the same, chirping that same word incessantly over and over again. 

"What is all this..?" Frisk asked, trying to look at all of them. She couldn't help but think they were adorable, just like anyone else here.

"Wow- So cute..!" Fiona exclaimed as she began trying to pet as many of them as she could. 

Claire giggled as she watched all of them, as if this were something completely normal. Then again, for her, it actually was. "Welcome to Temmie Village, you all. This is where I live, and take care of the Tems. I thought that maybe I could get a little bit of food here, so we could have a better chance of getting past Undyne if we ever have to run into her again," she replied, giving a courteous smile. "I'll be off for a moment, so the three of you just relax and have fun!" She then made off toward some back area of the village, leaving the younger kids to play with the Tems.

And trust me, they were not disappointed in doing this at all. They had a lot of fun playing, as if they were a bunch of puppies, full of energy. Trust me, it was adorable to watch. But when Claire came back, although she tried to get them going right away, a new desire made them want to stop for a little bit longer. 

"Umm, Miss Claire-? Can we take one of the Temmies with us?" Fiona asked, with pleading eyes, trying to convince her with cuteness alone. 

"What? Why?" the teen responded, raising an eyebrow. 

"Because they're really cute... And I never had a puppy before... And- And..!" She then began to show off the puppy eyes, hoping that they would have some sort of effect on her. Noticing the strategy at hand, Frisk and Elliot soon joined her, making the eldest of them sigh.

"Okay, okay- We can take one with us, but we have to make sure they stay safe, alright? You can do the honors of picking one out for us, alright, Fiona?"

"Um, okay!" she replied, going off to grab the Temmie of her choice, which happened to be the smallest one out of the bunch, so it would be much easier for her to carry. "Is this one okay?"

"Of course, as long as it's ready to go along with us. Is that the case?" Claire asked, bending down to get a response from the Tem, which was a "yAyAAA!" And as you could tell, it made Fiona very happy to see. 

Though, everything seemed nice for now, it seems that Frisk was a bit anxious to get moving again, just so they could be on the move and such. "Uhh, do you guys think we can get moving now? I think the more distance we cover, the less likely we are to get caught..." she interjected, which was replied to with a nod on all sides. After all, moving along was Frisk and Fiona's only way out of this place, so they needed to get out somehow, right?

Anyway, onward they went, Fiona starting to babble a little bit with her new friend/pet, that the others seemed to find cute. Though, as they went, Frisk couldn't help but get the feeling that the group was being watched. Though they didn't quite notice it themselves, she was just keeping on edge enough for everyone.

As the area began to grow darker and darker, soon enough, all that was visible to anyone was a single Echo Flower, that played a haunting message. "Behind you."

Though at first, it didn't make sense, once she turned around, Frisk was terrified by the sight of Undyne, standing right in front of, or behind their group, with her smaller companion at her side. As soon as the rest of them were alerted, Claire stepped out in front of everyone, with a harsh look in her eyes directed at the fish woman. "Don't you dare hurt them, or I swear-" she threatened, before getting sharply cut off.

"Determination. One soul with Determination," the woman began. "With that power, a ritual can be performed, and we can all be set free. We will finally be able to take back what was once ours, and show those who oppose us the suffering that we've felt for years. Do you children understand that this is your only chance to redeem yourself?" 

Though no one moved, Frisk had to ask, her voice quaking as she began to speak. "What... What do you mean?"

This time, the one who spoke was not Undyne, but the one next to her. "She means, you need to just give up your soul alread-"

"Ease up, lieutenant- Though he is right, give it up willingly, or I'll take it by force!" she bellowed, holding her spear out, ready to attack, though Claire began to guard, with Elliot joining in, and Fiona just holding her Tem close and cowering with fear. Though something soon interrupted them, and that just happened to be Monster Kid. 

"Undyne! I wanna help you fight!" he exclaimed, leaving the everyone in the area off guard, leading everything to a halt. Though once he noticed the four humans in front of him, he gasped. "YO! YOU GUYS LED UNDYNE RIGHT TO YOU! You get front row seats to her fight!" Though he seemed confused for a while, he soon perked up again. "Wait, who's she fighting?"

The whole area was silent for a moment, before Undyne decided not to bring up the matter anymore, and just dragged the other monster out, while he protested this completely, leaving the group alone with Undyne's lieutenant, who stayed behind for a short address.

"I would advise you lot get out of here while you can. It won't be pretty if she catches up to you, I can assure you of that."


	21. End of the Line

"Well, besides that little... Hiccup- For a moment there, we're almost safely to Hotland-" Claire remarked, as the group began approaching a bridge in the distance. 

"Ahh, I'm glad- I'm not sure how much longer I could deal with all this. The place is pretty and all, but Undyne chasing us everywhere kid of ruins it," Frisk admitted, the others not disagreeing in the slightest. 

"Well, then you won't have to worry about it. She can't get far in Hotland, since she's a fish and all, so if we shake her, then she won't be catching us any time soon."

But, just as they had almost crossed the whole bridge, something stopped them. "Yo!" Oh, not him again. Anyone but him. He'd quickly jogged up to the group, Fiona and Elliot both straining to contain their annoyance, while the older two seemed a bit better with it. "Yo, I know I'm not supposed to be here, but... I wanna ask you guys something."

"Sure, spit it out already," Elliot rushed, crossing his arms and hoping that this would be over quick. 

Monster Kid nodded, though he was hesitating quite a lot. As if he wasn't sure how to ask about this. "Man, I never thought I'd be asking this-" he mumbled. Thank you. Thank you for making my point for me. "Um... Are one of you guys... Determined?"

Now, that one made most of them pretty shocked. Even a kid that age knew about that whole deal? But, when it came down to it, Frisk stepped up, ready to explain. "Yeah, I am, actually," she replied, as the other three gave her concerned looks for even thinking to share that information.

"Man! I knew it! ... Well, I know it now, I mean." He paused, now waiting again, probably for the same reason as the last time. "Undyne told me, um, 'stay away from that one.' So, like, um. I think that makes us enemies? But I'm... Really bad at that so- Can you say something mean so I can hate you?"

"I'll do i-!" Elliot began.

"Elliot-" Claire interrupted, glaring daggers at him until he finally stopped with that idea. 

Though, even if it might be easier for him or Fiona to do something like that, or even if that kid was seriously annoying, she couldn't just say something mean to him. After all, it was hard to be mean without any good cause for it. So she shook her head, planning to stay firm on that decision.

"Yo, what? So I have to do it?" the monster whined. Well, that wasn't quite what Frisk had in mind, but she didn't think it was all that great of an idea to object either. "Here goes nothing..." He took a deep breath, before speaking once again, trying to look as hostile as possible, which only made him look sort of adorable. "Yo, I... I hate your guts!" After earning a snicker from Elliot, his face flattened. "Man, I'm such a turd... I'm just gonna go home." As he just went to walking off, and the group of kids watching him while he did so, he was suddenly stopped by a bend in the bridge that made him trip, almost falling over the edge, to the children's surprise. "Yo, w-w-wait! Help! I tripped!"

Before anyone could make any sort of move toward him, Undyne appeared on her lonesome, making every single one of them freeze in place. Should they still do something? Or should they let the fish woman handle it? As they all locked eyes, the kid below them tried to get their help again. "Wh-What are you standing around for! Get over here, guys!" 

As the woman kept approaching, Frisk was frozen in fear. Fiona seemed to be as well, while Elliot kind of just stood there in a daze, as if he didn't really care. Though, it was safe to say that he didn't. But Claire, she was different. Though she hesitated a bit at first, a sudden resolve came in, as she ran toward the gap in the bridge, and grabbed Monster Kid before Undyne had the chance to. Once he was up on the bridge safely again, she had to ask, "Are you alright? You almost fell hard there-"

"Yeah, I'm okay!" he replied, going right back to his chipper self, as Undyne looked over them both. 

"Good job on saving him this time, didn't you almost fall the last time you tried a stunt like that?" the woman soon butted in to ask, making Claire almost grow... Embarrassed. 

"That was a long time ago, alright?" Claire replied with a huff. "And anyway, it was the right thing to do. I wasn't just going to leave him there to die."

"So, is protecting that kid the 'right thing' to do too?"

"Of course it is. And I'll keep doing it, even if I have to get through you in order to do it." 

A heavy silence soon covered the air, even Elliot understanding the full weight of all this. Without a word, Undyne soon began to drag Monster Kid off again, although he protested it heavily. Once they were alone again, Claire wordlessly began to walk, her gaze seeming a mix of annoyed and protective as she went, the others hurrying to follow behind her, keeping silent the rest of the way there.

It was meant to be a clear walk the rest of the way to Hotland. No expected delays, no one stopping them. But something was quick to come up. Something that they couldn't quite avoid. A mountain stood above them. And who was on top of it, waiting for them like a hawk, in wait of it's prey? Undyne, of course. Who else were you expecting at this point. Though they tried to move on, the fish soon began to speak, her voice so loud and bellowing that they couldn't help but stop and stare. 

"Determination. A soul of Determination is needed, before we can escape this miserable place," she began, indicating that they'd have to listen to another long speech from this one. Which means I have to listen to it. Great... "You." She pointed at Frisk for a quick moment, before retracting her arm. "You are the only one we've seen in a hundred years that has that trait. Understand? With your soul, and your power, the world will be transformed. First, however, as it is customary for the children who make it this far, I shall tell you the tragic tale of our people. It all started... long ago..." The speech came to an abrupt halt, as the group waited to hear it, even if they sort of already knew in the first place. Yet, it was all for naught, as she spoke again. "No, you know what? SCREW IT! WHY SHOULD I TELL THAT STORY WHEN YOU'RE ABOUT TO DIE?!" With a loud war cry, she took of the helmet she was wearing, revealing her gills, and more fish like features, before sending a glare their way. "You!" She pointed at Frisk once again, keeping her hand where it was this time. "You're getting in the way of everyone's hopes and dreams!

"And you're just some coward too! Letting someone else save your friend because you were too scared of me? Hah, what a joke! But you and your goody two-shoes act won't help you this time. Lieutenant! Get the other three and subdue them!" 

As she said that, Frisk glanced over at the others, or where they were supposed to be. After all, they seemed to just go missing right after that phrase! Well, they didn't quite go missing. After a bit more searching, she noticed that the other three were being held back close to another cavern wall by the Lieutenant himself by swordpoint. What Frisk didn't come to realize, was that the kids didn't seem to be putting up much of a fight to get out. And Fiona was the only one who seemed relatively scared. But she wasn't even paying attention to that for some reason, as she then turned right back to Undyne, now looking a bit more confident. She had to help her friends, somehow. She stepped up to the plate without warning, before even realizing what was about to happen next. "Now you really face me like a true hero? Good. Now, ready or not, here I come!" With that, everything changed, as a real battle began.


	22. Skewer-Me-Not

The battle began just as it always did. The enemy approaching, and a battle-like energy filling the air. Although it wasn't all as it seemed. Because right as things were about to start, Undyne changed her soul to a color that she had never seen before. Green. She didn't know what that meant, but as that happened, a spear formed in her hand. What was this supposed to be for? Well, she'd have to find out quick, because the battle was about to begin. "En garde!" the fish woman shouted. Although she didn't have a clue what she was doing, Frisk couldn't falter now. No more running away, the battle begins.

* Undyne attacks!

Frisk wasn't quite sure what to do after all this. All she knew was that this woman had been ruthless ever since she'd first encountered her. Yet she still refused to fight, because there had to be something she could do that didn't involve killing, right? So, she went right for the ACT options that she was used to, where three laid out before her. Check, Plead, and Challenge. Though they all seemed pretty valid, she was pretty sure that pleading would be her best option here. After all, challenging someone as volatile as this was something even this girl knew better than to do. 

"Undyne, please! I... I don't want to fight you!" the girl cried. Though of course, knowing her, the cries went unanswered. Seriously though, what was she expecting, it wasn't like her to spare people at all! Especially not if they were the only thing standing in the way of breaking the barrier. Like come on, how was she expecting this to end?

No, she just brushed it off like the preteen hadn't even spoken to her at all, as she began to explain this setup a bit. Because at least that would make things a bit more fair, even if that probably didn't even matter in the end. "As long as you're green, you can't escape! So unless you learn to face danger head on, you won't last a second against me!" she yelled, before a different style of battle became clear to the girl. She couldn't move around at all! The only thing that was available to help her dodge was the spear in her hand. But what was it for..? Wait, finally, she had an idea on what the answer might be!

As the spears came coming in, all through the front, thankfully enough, she faced her own spear toward them, in an attempt to block her head. And wouldn't you know it, the strategy actually worked. So good on her, she might not actually die in here. Once it was all over, she could swear she heard cheering in the background. The cheering of those she befriended thus far in the sidelines. Though this just made her resolve more clear. Not only did she have to save herself from this fighting, but she had to make sure that they would be safe too!

So on the fight went, the spears getting progressively harder to dodge, although she kept onward. Even if she was taking a bit of damage, she was doing alright out there, since she didn't seem quite close to death either. Maybe there would be a way through this, even if she continually spared at every turn, while that did nothing for her at that point. Though, maybe that was the point of all this, since after a while of blocking and sparing, something new happened. And that something new was her soul turning back to red. With the memory of what something Undyne said coming to her brain, she finally knew what to do. Finally, since she was red again, there was one thing she could do that she couldn't before. And that was escape! She didn't need to stay like this forever. She could just run on out of this situation, which was exactly what she did. 

Gesturing toward the other kids, she cried out "COME ON, WE GOTTA GO!" to the lot of them, and they quickly complied, not even having to do much to get past the Lieutenant. With Claire grabbing Fiona and putting her on her back for a ride, off the group went. As they ran, there were faint signs of Undyne giving a scolding to the boy who was supposed to be guarding them, but that soon ended, as both of them quickly ended up hot on their trail. Now it was really time to sprint on out of here.

So the chase began as you'd think it would. The kids were running right away from Undyne and her partner as quickly as they could. And though they were technically pursuing the whole group, it was really Frisk that they seemed to be after here. Though, that was obvious to anyone who knows even a little of what's going on here, so I probably didn't have to explain it to you. 

As it continued though, both parties noticed a large increase in temperature, that seemed inexplicable at first. But then, the cause could finally be told by a welcome sign. 'WELCOME TO HOTLAND' it read. And no kidding, it felt like a sauna to anyone who was coming in here, but Claire seemed happy about it, and for good reason too. "We finally made it! We'll only have to go a bit farther now!" she stated through panting breath. Though no one else knew what she meant, the meaning became clear once they made it a bit farther into the scorching area. And oh man, was it hard to press onward, but they had to do it anyway. After all, it was their only route of escape. 

A few minutes later, when the group was unsure if they could take any more of the heat, and they'd just crossed over a bridge, something happened in their favor. The woman began to slow, her steps becoming labored, before she dropped to the ground, unable to continue on. So this is what happens when you put a fish somewhere hot and steamy. Good to know for future reference. Frisk let out a sigh of relief, but that wasn't the end of their troubles. At least she didn't think so, because the Lieutenant was still up and kicking, probably ready to impale every single one of them if he were ordered. Well, at least that's what it looked like first hand.

The boy approached them, sword pointed out toward them. Frisk was incredibly nervous. What was he going to do to them? Although, the others, even Fiona, seemed relatively calm about this, but we could think of explanations for that later. The sword was soon retracted to his side, and it was replaced by a hand, held out to Claire.

"Good game..."

"And to you as well."

* WATERFALL ARC: E N D


	23. Reveals in a New Medium

Frisk's jaw nearly dropped at the revelation that stood before her, as her friend, and supposed foe now shook hands in front of her face. Claire had a smile on her face that made the preteen know that this was genuine, but how? What did they know that she didn't? Well, maybe instead of standing there and looking a mile ahead, she should just ask them. But nope, of course she's too caught up in it to actually say anything about it.

Thankfully for us, Claire finally noticed our confused protagonist here, and her attention went toward her. "Oh, I almost forgot... I should probably explain what's happened here, shouldn't I?" she said, while Frisk gave a bewildered nod. "Right, right- Well, for starters, I should explain who my friend here is. This is Jacob, lieutenant of the Royal Guard, and a personal friend of mine. I apologize if he scared you or anything, he tends to get a bit excited when it comes to this part. He wasn't intending to kill you, isn't that right?"

Once the male realized that the attention was all on him, he staggered a bit, trying to think on how he was supposed to reply to that statement. "Of course not, I was merely preforming my duties, though I tried my best to not harm you myself," he replied, seeming much too formal with his gestures. 

"But... Does that mean Undyne wasn't trying to kill me either?" Frisk asked, almost hopeful that this was the case. It was almost like she'd forgotten that she died at the hands of Undyne in one route. So yeah, she definitely wasn't the type for hot blooded murder.

"Oh no, of course she wanted you dead. It's nothing personal of course, you're just a human with determination, so we do need your soul, more or less." While he seemed nonchalant about it, the explanation didn't make Frisk any calmer than she was before. 

As Claire sent a glance of disapproval his way for mentioning it, she decided to keep up with the explanation. "So, the reason we didn't tell you about this? Well, it's because this is part of a game he and I have played for the longest time," she chirped, making Frisk give a look that couldn't even be deciphered at this point. Was it really even worth it to try? I assume not, so let's just keep going. "The basis of said game? It's simple, in all honesty. I try to guide whatever new human has fallen down here, like you, all the way to Hotland, while Jacob and Undyne hunt you down mercilessly. If I can get you to Hotland without you getting caught or killed, then I win. If you get caught though, then Jacob wins. By the way, thanks for taking your loss like a good sport."

"Ah? Well- I guess I have been- You're... welcome?" the male replied, almost looking flustered at her words. But Frisk wasn't paying attention to whatever was happening over there. Her real attention was turned to the two snickering kids behind her. 

What was so funny? Well, that was another question that should be asked pretty soon. "Uh, guys? What's so funny?" Frisk raised an eyebrow at the pair, who stopped in their tracks, at least for the moment.

They looked at each other, silently trying to form a sentence among themselves without having to do it themselves. Their attempts soon ended, since one of them soon started talking. "Umm, so Jacob talked to us a little bit ago and...-" Fiona began, before quickly getting cut off.

"WE KNEW THE WHOLE TIME AHAHA!" Elliot added, with Fiona nodding, and the both of them collapsing onto the floor with giggles. The eldest two stared at each other for a moment, before Jacob decided to explain that whole mess.

"Although they probably could've said so in a more organized manner, what they say is true. When you all got separated at the boardwalk, I was still chasing those two. Once I figured out you weren't there, Frisk, and while I didn't want to keep the two young ones in the dark like that, since the little one looked so frightened, I told them about our game, and made sure they kept it a secret."

"Well, that's very admirable of you. I'm truly proud," Claire beamed, while Jacob began to trip over some sort of thank you for that, but even then it was impossible for him to master, even if Frisk was starting to see that this was growing to be a waste of time. After all, she wanted to go home soon!

Though she seemed patient enough with the entire group, she couldn't help but finally get them to go along. "Umm, maybe we should try to get moving soon? After all, I want to get somewhere that isn't so hot..." she mumbled. She was even thinking of taking her own jacket off, which was a rarity as it was. Then again, it was much cooler on the top of the mountain than it was here.

"Yeah! This is fun, but it's also kind of boring!" Elliot piped up, seemingly done with the whole charade about the secret he and Fiona had been keeping. The little girl was too, though she was a bit slower to her feet. 

"Though, I probably should've asked you this a few minutes ago, but would it be alright if I accompany you all?" Jacob asked, which was a surprise to Frisk in itself. I mean, she wouldn't object to it knowing her, but for once, she had some sensible questions like what some normal person would have.

"Sure, I guess... But why would you want to help us? You're a monster too, right? Meaning you'd want my soul. So why-?" Frisk was cut off by another laughing fit from our kids. Now, what were they getting at? 

"Wait, you thought I was a monster?" the armor-clad boy asked, almost seeming shocked, which even earned a giggle from Claire as he removed his helmet, revealing the face of a twelve year old human child. "I am so hurt!" Now that was one hell of a twist, even if some of you probably already saw this coming a mile away. 

Frisk though, being pretty dense, just needed a moment to process, before once again coming to the smart decision not to think about it. "Alright then, let's just get going-" she sighed, as she tried to get everyone moving. Yet, it seemed like the smallest of the group had something to do here still, which was get a bit of water, and pour it on the captain's head. 

"Excuse me, dear, but what was all that about?" Claire asked, turning back as everyone waited for this to be done with.

"Oh... I just wanted to give her some water, 'cause she looked hot and sad. She was kinda scary, but she should be happy too, right?" Fiona replied. Of course she had to be pure about it. With a new smile brought to Claire's face, the group continued on with all that in mind.

Although, the walk through the place was tough. After all, a lot of them were wearing clothes that weren't quite suitable to the heat. Most of them knew they wouldn't last long out here, until a laboratory appeared before them. Now that place was bound to be cold! Although, only two of them had any idea who was in here. So, seeing as the door itself opened up without a key or anything important, the group headed into the dark lab. 

Did I mention how dark the place was? It was as if the lab had been abandoned, or at least been left alone for a bit, seeing that the fridge didn't have anything rotten in there, and there was a TV going. Wait, that wasn't an ordinary TV... This one was broadcasting all five of the kids? Wait, why? They aren't even interesting.

"Well, I guess I'm sure of who this lab belongs to now..." Claire mumbled, Jacob nodding in agreement, even if no one else fully understood it. 

"Wait, you do? Who is it then?" Frisk asked, before her question was nearly answered for her, as an automatic door soon opened, letting some light flood into the darkened room. And then, after that, the lights were turned on, revealing what looked to be a lizard in a lab coat. Once again, we're not going to question this. But a response was soon clear, giving them at least a small look on this strange looking scientist.

"Doctor Alphys..."


	24. Double Metal Souls

As it was quickly made clear by one of the humans who was more familiar with the place, these five kids were now face to face with the Royal Scientist herself, though someone who looked just as nervous as she did probably didn't even know that they'd eventually make it here. Yeah, even Elliot could tell that the small lizard woman was freaked out of her wits at the moment, although it wasn't as if she had so much of a reason to, these were just kids.

Though, she soon made a movement that stopped her from looking like a deer in headlights. She turned away from the group for a moment, before looking back at them, her expression not really changing at all from this. "Oh. My God. I didn't expect all of you to be here, especially as early as you are! I'm not even all the way dressed! And this place is so messy..! A-And-" she stammered, unable to finish an entire thought here. 

"Whoa, whoa, Alphys, calm down, it's fine," Claire assured her, putting on a nice smile in order to help her ease up a little bit. Well, at least she seemed to be good at it too.

Though, Jacob seemed to be taking a different approach at this, and it probably wasn't as... Nice, as the sixteen year old's way. "And it's not like Undyne's here or anything, so you can relax if you were worried about that," he said, with a slight smirk on his face, though that earned him a nudge on the arm from Claire.

"She isn't? O-Oh thank gosh-" Alphys breathed, not even realizing her mistake there until a few seconds later, when a slight color came to her cheeks. "I-I-I mean, it's not like it matters or anything-" Of course that was a complete lie, but whatever. Deciding to try and start over, she took a breath and adjusted her lab coat. "H-Hi!"

"Hi," the children awkwardly replied, making this a little bit harder on Alphys than it needed to be, but at this point it wasn't as if any of them were paying attention to that. There was a minute long pause before the lizard began to speak again, mostly since they were all at a point where none of them knew what to say.

"Well, as some of you already know, I'm Doctor Alphys, the king's Royal Scientist," she stated proudly. although her pride was soon diminished once she realized who she was talking to. "A-Ah! I'm not going to try and hurt you, or take your soul or anything-!" That whole bit was directed toward Frisk, who couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief. After all, she'd had enough of having people chase her down, as would anyone. Though, that relief may be put into question rather quick. "Actually, since you and Fiona left the Ruins I've... Been observing you guys- I guess-..." Creep. A look of nervousness came to Frisk's face. "I mean, I was supposed to stop you but- Watching someone like you through the screen made me really want to root for you. S-So now I want to help!"

Well, even if most of them seemed grateful for this, Elliot, being the confident kid he was, quickly jumped in. "Hey! We can get through by ourselves. We don't need help!" he objected, only to get his mouth covered by Claire.

"Ah, what he meant to say, is that we'd be grateful for your help," she added, with a strained smile on her face. 

"O-Oh! Thank you for letting me, though there is one thing that you should be careful of around here-" the doctor stated, before she was quickly interrupted by the sound of a crash that resonated through the lab. Yes, someone had just blown a hole through the wall. You know, like a heathen. Whatever it was not only didn't know how doors worked, but it made Alphys pale through the darkness. "Oh no."

"OHHH YES! WELCOME, BEAUTIES, TO THE QUIZ SHOW!" And with that, a series of colored lights spread throughout the room, causing Jacob to let out an annoyed groan, while most of the others watched in awe. What soon came out of the hole happened to be a square shaped robot, with a girl around the age of ten with robotic attachments all over her body sitting on top of it, grinning from ear to ear. It seems that it was the box that was doing most of the talking here, surprisingly. He sped over toward Jacob, letting his jutting hands turn the corners of the perseverance soul's mouth into a smile. "AH, DON'T BE SO BLUE. IT'S GOING TO BE A GREAT SHOW TONIGHT!" The girl then whispered something toward the other robot, to which he seemed to nod, and go right over to Frisk, which made her sweat like crazy. "AH, LYRA HERE JUST REMINDED ME THAT OUR INTELLIGENCE SAYS YOU, YOUNG BEAUTY, ARE TO BE OUR NEXT CONTESTANT."

"Wait, me?!" she asked, though I'm not even surprised by now, since it seems like everyone's out to kill her.

"YES, YOU!" he repeated. "NO TIME FOR QUESTIONS OR EXPLANATIONS, LET'S GET ON WITH IT!" he exclaimed, before everything proceeded as if they were entering a battle or something. And so the cycle begins once again. 

Though the four others behind them tried to give a supporting hand, and Alphys was even giving her own thumbs up from behind the robot, Frisk was still incredibly nervous. After all, who knows what would be in store with this robot. Undyne was already enough for her right now, and now this?! She would've had a meltdown if she were any younger than she is, but no. Now she had to participate in whatever this quiz show was. 

Since she didn't think that doing anything except answering the questions would do her any good, so she just hit the Mercy button and hoped for the best. And the fun, quickly began. 

With a dozen sudden cue cards, and rather large ones at that, the girl, seeming to be known as Lyra, hopped down from her metal companion to try and help out in some way. And while she didn't say anything just yet, as it seemed the robot was going to do a lot of the talking here, at least she didn't seem to be murderous or anything. "OKAY, LET'S START WITH AN EASY QUESTION!" the robot said, before Lyra flipped a card over, which said the following: "What is the prize for answering correctly?"

Well, that wasn't easy at all! After all, it wasn't as if the whole game had even been explained. But, there was something that helped out, and that was Alphys showing the answer with her hands, which was shown to be the letter D. I mean, I guess it was worth a shot. With the four answers spread out in front of her, she chose the one labelled D, and it was correct. The doctor grinned, and Lyra cheered, even if she was probably supposed to be on the other side of this right now. Not as if Frisk was complaining about it or anything, she could use all the support she could get. 

As the game continued from there, things didn't seem to be quite so bad. The doctor helped when she could, and when she couldn't, there were always here four friends on the sidelines, who seemed happy enough to help. Well, all that was soon subject to change, once someone couldn't help but open their big mouth. 

The question card read, "In the dating simulation video game "Mew Mew Kissy Cutie," what is Mew Mew's favorite food?" Of course, it sounded like the perfect question for our resident dork. All too perfect, in fact. 

Quickly, she began spouting out the answer like a faucet that had been waiting ages to get turned on. "OH! OH! I KNOW THIS ONE! IT'S SNAIL ICE CREAM!! BECAUSE IN THE FOURTH CHAPTER EVERYONE GOES TO THE BEACH AND-!" I'm just going to let you imagine how the rest of that explanation went, because I can't even listen to this without wanting to gag. Though through all that, all the kids seemed to be trying to get her attention. First Lyra, then Jacob and Claire, then the whole group of five was practically yelling at her, interrupting her little speech. "Wh-What?" she asked, before looking over at the robot, and then to Frisk. Yeah, she messed up. Big time. 

"ALPHYS. ALPHYS. ALPHYS. I'M ASHAMED TO SEE YOU HELPING THE GIRL LIKE THIS. BUT IF YOU BOTH ARE PLAYING, I GUESS I HAVE A BETTER QUESTION FOR YOU. LYRA! GET THE EMERGENCY CARD OUT." She nodded, and then showed it off to Frisk. 

"Who does Doctor Alphys have a crush on?"

This was going to be good. 

Remembering everything that happened earlier, the determined human had a pretty good guess on who it could be, and it only help that from behind her, Jacob was forming the letter "A" with his hands. So, there was no question that it had to be A. Undyne. 

Of course, she was correct. 

"SEE ALPHYS, I TOLD YOU IT WAS OBVIOUS. EVEN THE HUMAN FIGURED IT OUT!" the robot said, while Alphys hid her face in her hands, unable to stand all this bullying. It didn't help that Claire was snickering a tiny bit, even if she was doing her best to keep it discreet, while Jacob was full on cackling by this point. "BUT, EVEN SO, WITH ALL THIS ASSISTANCE, WE HAVE NO DRAMATIC TENSION. THANK GOODNESS THIS IS ONLY THE PILOT THOUGH. SO, TO ALL YOU BEAUTIES OUT THERE, TUNE IN ON THE SAME CHANNEL TO SEE ME, AND THE HUMAN ONCE AGAIN. TA-TA FOR NOW!" And with that, something completely strange happened. The robotic wheel that the robot had been on completely disappeared, and was replaced by a rocket, that shot him right out of the ceiling. Now that was an exit. Though everyone else was left behind in it's wake. 

After a pretty long silence, it seemed Fiona was going to be the first to speak, even if she was trembling hard. "Wh-What was that-... The robot man was scary-..." she mumbled, as she went to hide her face in Frisk's jacket. 

"Th-That was Mettaton. A robot I designed. He was supposed to be built for entertainment, but there a quite a few bugs in his system, y-you know?" she replied, though it seems that two of the humans were a little bit skeptical about that. While they decided not to question it right now, it was clear that there may be something going on here, at least to them. But as the doctor soon brought her attention to Elliot's phone, and began to program it and stuff, Frisk tried to talk with the others for a bit here. 

"I don't think I'm ready to go through with all this. I mean, a robot that probably wants to eat my soul?" she said, beginning to panic, though she soon calmed a little once Fiona began to give her a hug, and Claire gave her a pat on the shoulder. 

"You'll be alright," Claire began, going toward her trademark motherly tone, which she thought would have some kind of effect. "You have the rest of us to help you out, so don't worry."

"I dunno, I still think that this is going to be too much for me." Even though she shouldn't even be worried about death at this point. I thought we established this about nine chapters ago. But it looked like Jacob was starting to form a plan to get around this. 

"Well, if you aren't all that sure of yourself, then there is one place we can go," the preteen said, almost seeming a bit devious. Sure, we'll be backtracking, but if you can survive this, you can survive anything."

Frisk had to think about this before nodding in reply. After all, did she even have anything to lose? "Sure, I hope that this isn't about to be some death trap."

As the five children now started walking toward Waterfall, while it wasn't even a death trap by any means, Frisk didn't have a clue about what she had just signed herself up for.


	25. Friendship and Attempted Murder

"When I said I wanted to get stronger, and I think Fiona can vouch for me when I say that, but this isn't what I meant," Frisk said, as she stared up at the fish shaped house that stood before her, Fiona, and Jacob. Yes, while the three of them were off doing some sort of "special training", which consisted of a hangout with the one who had been trying to kill Frisk at first. Undyne. But, of course, Jacob decided not to tell them this, so Fiona had decided she wanted to tag along, while Claire and Elliot decided to spend a bit more time in Waterfall. Which meant that the three of them were left to face the fish woman by themselves, although they'd soon learn that it really wouldn't be that bad.

"Oh, come on. You didn't even ask about it. But, we're already here, so it isn't like you're about to get out of this," Jacob replied, as he proceeded to drag the two younger girls along with them, since there wasn't the best chance of either of them coming along with him willingly. But, as this went ahead, the group of them soon noticed a figure close to the house. A familiar figure. Oh my gosh, it's Papyrus. At least that was one familiar, and seemingly benign face to see around here. Although Jacob and Fiona weren't all that enthusiastic about his presence, Frisk welcomed it with open arms, as she picked up the pace to the house, while the other two found themselves following behind. 

And, it would be a lie to say that the tall skeleton had been expecting the rest of them here. After all, unlike most of these timelines, she hadn't got a call from Papyrus about this, so they were just kind of involving themselves in whatever business Papyrus had here, but it wasn't as if they cared a lot about that. Especially not Frisk, since she was so avid about getting this over with. But, at any rate, it wasn't like he'd greet the group with anything less than a smile, since that was Papyrus for you. "OH, HELLO HUMANS!" he cheered, while about to knock on the door. Actually, he appeared to stop mid-knock, as he kept his eyes on the children. "HAVE YOU COME FOR A COOKING LESSON, TOO?" 

While Frisk was about to explain everything, Jacob was soon to cut in. "Ah, yes of course. Frisk especially needs it for uh... Training purposes...-" he replied, while earning a sideways look from Frisk. Somehow. 

"AH, ALRIGHT. I GUESS IT'S TIME FOR IT TO START THEN. LET ME KNOCK ON THE DOOR!" the skeleton replied, before he rapped on said door, harder than any of them would've thought. But they really should've been expecting it. You know, since he's made of bones. But yes, the piano music that had apparently been playing the whole time had been interrupted, and none other than Undyne emerged from the door, as her and Papyrus got to greeting each other. After all, the kids were much shorter, and harder to see behind Papyrus' big mass of bones. Especially not Fiona, who was taking full advantage of this, and was hiding behind Frisk at the moment. Papyrus made her rather nervous, but Undyne was a whole new level of fear for her.

"Hey, Papyrus! Ready for your extra private, one-on-one cooking lesson?" Undyne asked once she noticed that Papyrus was out there. She seemed happy enough for now, but anyone with a brain could tell that this was about to change for the worse. 

"OF COURSE, THOUGH I HOPE YOU DON'T MIND THAT I BROUGHT A FEW OTHERS WITH ME!" Jacob was first to emerge with that statement, since he knew that she probably wouldn't be all that opposed to him being there, since he did live here after all. 

"Ah, hello Captain. I hope you don't mind all this. After all, I am sort of invading, yet I've taken a sort of interest in-"

"SAY NO MORE!" Undyne cheered, taking her lieutenant under her arm. "You wanna cook with us, then sure! Never thought I'd get to see the chance for you to show your skills like that, but awesome."

"AH YES, AND I ALSO HAVE SOME NEWER FRIENDS!" Papyrus interrupted, as he stepped aside, though that just made Fiona hide right behind Frisk, trembling like a mouse. 

As you could tell, Undyne was at the very least surprised by this. I mean, who wouldn't be if the one who you were trying to strike down was standing right in front of you, in front of your innocent friend. So it wasn't as if she could kill Frisk or anything. So yeah... Great... Of course, with this in mind, the fish woman knew that she couldn't be a bad host, so she let out a sigh and cleared the way. "Why don't you all come in..." she seethed, as the four of them went in, even though Fiona had to essentially be dragged in by her two seniors. 

* HANGOUT, START!

"Alright everyone, let's get started with the lesson!" Undyne prompted, as if she was trying to rush all of this. Frisk sort of wanted to rush it all as well, since she just didn't want to die at this point, since she wanted to get to Hotland and be done. And of course, Papyrus would be there to help. Or, so they thought. 

"OH, I JUST REALIZED, I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!" he said, as he went to bash open a window. "HEY, MAKE SURE YOU MAKE FRIENDS WITH ALL THOSE HUMANS THOUGH. AFTER ALL, THE STRONGEST THING WE CAN DO IS MAKE FRIENDS WITH THEM!" And that was when the afternoon went from awkward to interesting. As the skeleton crashed through the window to get to the bathroom, the four of them were soon left in the room. 

"Well, I see that you're apparently here to "hang out", or whatever, so let's get to that. After all, I ain't a coward, right Jacob?" she asked, almost looking as if he didn't respond correctly, he'd just get shot down. Literally. 

"Y...Yes ma'am," he said with a nod. "But uh... Shouldn't we ask them if they want a drink or something?" Well, at least he was trying, although he seemed a bit shaken by all this. This was his idea, what was he doing?

Undyne nodded at the idea. After all, anything that could help with this slight tension would help them out. With that in mind, she chucked a spear at the group, which both Frisk and Fiona dodged, while Jacob caught it with one hand. I guess he was used to all this, which was pretty obvious, since again, he lived here. "Nice catch, Lieutenant," she said. "Now, one of you should point to what you want."

Frisk looked up at Jacob, putting her hands out, since she sort of wanted to pick something out. It would be fun, because she had an idea to break the tension, even if it was very risky. Even if he had no idea what she wanted, Jacob handed her the spear anyway. Oh no. Without saying anything, she pointed the spear right at Undyne, with a smile on her face. It wasn't even a smirk or anything, it was so genuine, and you could tell that Undyne was actually blushing. "A-Are you flirting with me?" she asked. With that, she decided to look away from Frisk, as Fiona just stood there, looking really confused, as Jacob couldn't help but start laughing. "Uh- Why don't we just have some tea?" It was obvious she was trying to keep face, and I can relate to that. But please, stop this child. 

After the tea boiled, Undyne sat down three cups of tea down in front of them, as she sat down, in order to have a little talk with them. It was probably the most benign thing that happened here. Or that will happen here. At this point, why would anything good really happen? "Hey, I just realized that this is golden flower tea-... Asgore's favorite-" she said. "Actually, now that I'm thinking about it, you kids that have come down here... You're all a lot like him, you know? Since you're all a bunch of dorks! I mean... Not exactly. You know, I was hotheaded as a little guppy..."

"Wait, I think I know this one! You tried to fight him, right? And then you lost bad, so he trained you until you could be him. And that's how you became the captain, right?" Jacob recalled, as Frisk and Fiona listened intently. Heck, it was really nice to know all this, at least to them. It was even starting to ease Fiona to know that Undyne was a real sort of person, right? Yeah, I'm surprised too. 

"Oh, so you do remember. Good on ya, Lieutenant," Undyne said with a grin. "So yeah, now I get to train dorks like you." She gave Jacob a pat on the head, although he didn't seem all that happy about this. "And... Like Papyrus- You know, I don't think that I can ever let him into the Royal Guard-"

"Um... Wh-wh-why n-not?" Fiona stammered, this being the first time she's talked in a long time. 

"Well, it's not because he's weak, it's because he's too nice! Like, he was supposed to capture the two of you, right? Well, look at him now, he just wanted to be your friend! If I sent him into battle, I don't think I'd ever see him again. So yeah, I've been trying to curve his attention by giving him cooking lessons..." She paused after that, squinting at something, which made everyone in the room go tense. "Wait... His LESSON! But he's not here for it so- One of you is going to have to take it!" Oh no. "And I choose... YOU!" Undyne grabbed Frisk by the wrist, and pulled her away from the table, and to the counter to start whatever insane "lesson" they were going to go through. 

Fiona and Jacob, on the other hand, just seemed to stare at each other for a moment, both with a varying level of fear in their eyes. "We should... Probably be going," Jacob whispered to the seven year old.

"B-But, what about Frisk?" she piped, a frown on her face.

"She'll catch up, let's go." And with that, he pulled Fiona away from the table, and out of the house as discreetly as he could. Thankfully, it seemed as if no one else noticed their grand escape.

And trust me, it was a good idea that the two of them left. Whatever this "lesson" was that went on here, was not for the faint of heart. Juices were spilled everywhere, noodles were vigorously stirred to the point where some boiling water got on Frisk. She didn't cry though, that was for later. And once the heat was cranked up, things went from bad to worse. It got hotter, and hotter, and hotter, until a fire blazed on the stove, and it quickly spread to everywhere else in the house. Like two responsible people, Frisk and Undyne rushed out of the blazing, fish shaped house. Once the two finally made it out, all they could do was stare at the fiery fish's home. 

"Man... I really messed up there," Undyne recounted, as Frisk gave a small nod in agreement, although she hoped that it went unseen. "Yeah... Maybe we shouldn't be friends, which means... I can kill you without remorse!" Oh boy.

Frisk's breath hitched as she heard that, looking right toward Undyne with a frantic look. "No, no, we should! And I bet Jacob could vouch for me, right?" And that was when they realized he'd taken Fiona and left. "Oh no..."

"OH YES! Human! I WILL STRIKE YOU DOWN!" Of course, as always, a battle began. And Frisk looked like she knew exactly what to do in response to this.

And, then she ran away. The girl got ready to bolt away from the house, but then, Undyne had to call her back "HEYY! I WAS JUST KIDDING ABOUT THE STRIKING YOU DOWN THING! YOU DON'T HAVE TO RUN AWAY!" she yelled, which stopped Frisk from going anywhere all on it's own. So she really wasn't going to die? And she might actually make a friend out of Undyne? Well, I'm not quite sure if she really wanted to be friends with her at this point, but whatever. It was about to be done. 

"Wait, really?" Frisk asked, looking at her with a mixture of surprise and doubt. But mostly doubt since... You know. 

"YEAH! I try to scare punks like you all the time. You shoulda seen Jacob's face when I did that to him when he was new here!" She looked around, looking quite a bit confused at the realization that he wasn't there. "Huh... Where'd he go? Ah, he's probably somewhere. Anyway, this was fun! We should do it again," she suggested, although Frisk probably would have to be against it. I wouldn't blame her. "Hey, but I'm probably gonna have to stay at Papyrus' for a while because... You know-" Undyne gestured to the burnt up house. I mean, I wouldn't want to live in something like that either, so that's something I can relate to. But at any rate, at least it meant that now if she wanted to go into Waterfall, she wouldn't have to worry about any murderous fish out to get her. "But hey, I'll see you later punk, alright?" 

"Okay-... I'll try to visit soon," Frisk replied, although that was probably a lie. Never again. 

"Alright! But hey, can I give you something first?" she asked, not even waiting for an answer before shoving a letter into the preteen's hands. "Okay, so this is addressed to Doctor Alphys. I'd deliver it myself, but she lives in Hotland, you know? If I have the chance, I really don't want to go over there, so yeah. Thanks for the help kid!" And off the fish went, without giving Frisk a sliver of a chance to decline. I mean, I wouldn't have done that either, so yeah. 

With all this in mind though, she had a plan of her own. And while she'd take care to deliver the letter if she thought about it, she knew that she'd also need to have a word with two children in particular


	26. Unbearable Heat

The five journeying kids found it hard to get anywhere in Hotland without feeling dehydrated, now that most of them weren't fighting or running for their lives anymore. Even if some of them had been through this place before, it wasn't something you just got used to. Though, surprisingly, Fiona seemed to be doing alright, even with the jacket she wore still on. Although it was strange to everyone else on the walk, they decided not to ask, keeping themselves alert in case she had a heat stroke, or something similar. 

All of them could agree though, the relief they felt once making it back to Alphys' lab again was overwhelming. Frisk in particular had even fallen onto the floor panting after all that, although this break wouldn't last for long. Not interrupted by a fight, but by a very cheery greeting.

"Jacob! Claire! Hi!" a young cyborg said, soon zipping in right near the duo, with the cutest little grin on her face. Although recuperation time would have been nice, no one had enough guts to tell her to go away. 

"Hello, Lyra," Claire courteously greeted, though the tired tone of her voice might have been a little more offsetting from that.

It took her a moment to realize all this too, finally taking notice of the fact of where they'd just come from. After all, even if she had cooling mechanisms in her so she wouldn't overheat, something had taught her of the dangers of the area, so she instantly grew a bit worried. "Oh! Oh my gosh, are you guys alright?"

"Don't worry, we're fine. Nothing a bit of air conditioning can't fix," Jacob claimed, soon enough getting up off the floor that he'd slid onto moments ago. 

"Easy for you to say, I'm still traumatized because of that 'hangout session' you made us go to," Frisk commented, shooting a glance toward Jacob, who had to stifle himself from laughing about it. Though, Lyra didn't seem all that amused by it.

She had to think about it for a moment, before she let out the most dramatic gasp Frisk had ever heard. "Did you make these poor children see Undyne? But she's crazy! You should know, you live with her," Lyra objected. Frisk couldn't help but laugh though, even if it was nice to have someone on her side in all this.

"What? She said she wanted some extra training so she'd be ready for Hotland, so I delivered. After all, if you can survive a hangout session with Undyne, you can survive anything," he explained. And seeing from all that's happened, I can say with certainty that it was true. It was still torturous for anyone involved, but whatever.

The cyborg sighed, before speaking again, deciding not to let this continue on too long. After all, she wouldn't want a fight to break out in the middle of the lab. now would she? "Alright... Anyway, I know you two, and I think I know Elliot..." she began, to which the bravery soul grinned and nodded to her, before she went to Frisk and Fiona. "So then, who are these two cuties?" 

As Fiona looked much too embarrassed to respond to that, even if she did like being called cute, Frisk took it quickly upon herself to reply, since she didn't want to have this introduction be too awkward. "Oh, my name's Frisk, and this little baby here is Fiona," she replied, to which the seven year old couldn't stop herself from giggling at. 

"So Frisk... and Fiona..." There was a small moment of silence between the two parties, before Lyra's grin came right back to her face. "I'll make sure I remember that, it's nice to meet you!" Obviously enough, the girl seemed happy to be around here, but at the same time, curious. "Hmm... But it does make me wonder, why are all of you so far out?"

Jacob and Claire took a look at each other, as if they were having an unspoken debate on who should talk about this. After what everyone thought to be a staring contest, Claire turned around and cleared her throat. "So... Has Alphys told you about the determination soul that recently fell down?"

"Yeah! I... I remember her saying a bit about it, and that I shouldn't look at the camera feeds for a while, in case something bad happened. But that does all that mean?"

"Well, this is the human in question, as you might have already guessed. At any rate, we wanted to help them get to the King. Though, after that..."

"Oh I...- Can I help?" 

Now, those words surprised Frisk. After all, if that girl was being so playful about everything earlier, then who knows what might happen if they were to take her along. But at any rate, it may fare better for them anyway. After all, with all the monsters that lay ahead of them, they could use all the help they could get. Especially if that help had what looked to be an arm cannon on her entire left arm.

So Frisk nodded in response, looking a bit cheerful for someone who'd been in deep contemplation a few moments beforehand. "Of course, anyone who wants to help can."

"You'll definitely need all the help you can get anyway," Jacob snidely commented, before he got shoved in the arm by Claire, for what was at least the third time today.

Since Lyra was disregarding the shoving for now, she nodded, and started right for the door that lead to the other end of Hotland, beckoning for the rest of the group to follow her. And without much doubt in their new companion, that's what they did, the sweltering heat hitting them like a wave once the door was opened, although they got used to it quicker than the first time around. 

But only going a few steps out of the lab yielded a message from Lyra. And it was no ordinary message. No, this didn't even sound as though it came from Lyra at all. "Status Update from Alphys: Just realized I didn't watch Undyne fight the human," she droned, before blinking a glaze out of her eyes. 

"Umm... What was that?" Fiona asked, growing concerned for their new group member, to which the cyborg shrugged. 

"Oh, I have a function that connects me to a cell phone, so it makes me read off notifications sometimes. Sorry if it annoys you-" she said, looking embarrassed about it.

"It's alright... Let's just hope that Alphys doesn't get too phone happy, and keep going," Jacob sighed, to which the whole group followed. And yes, in the span of around two minutes, this happened about three more times, much to the other children's annoyance, including Lyra, even if she tried her best not to show it off.

Finally though, they reached a set of steam vents. Claire, Jacob, and Lyra didn't seem at all surprised by them, but the other three looked wholy confused. Lyra looked to their confused faces, and giggled a tiny bit. "Oh! Oh! I don't think you guys have been on steam vents before! Unless you have those where you're from, right?" she asked, looking much too excited about these vents. I mean, I've been on things such as them before. Not all that impressive, if you ask me. 

"Uh, I'm from Snowdin, so you know I don't!" Elliot stated, while it was obvious that the other two girls had never been in this area of the Underground before just now. But it wasn't like Lyra minded that at all. She was happy to explain, at any rate.

"Okay! So that means we're going to have to teach you, but it's simple really!" she chirped, getting close to the edge before the vents. "So, how they work, is that you have to jump on all of the vents, that each have an arrow pointing in one direction. The vent only goes in that direction, so you'll be shot to the next vent that the arrow is pointing near." And with the explanation over with, Lyra hopped onto the first platform, which shot her up and onto the next. Soon enough, the rest of the group was following behind, even if the more experienced players were going first, in order to make sure that the newer ones could follow their examples. 

Even as they were hopping back and forth, there still seemed to be updates, much to the rest of their dismay. Did anyone care that much to know what was going on in some random lizard monster's life. Because I sure don't, and I best most of you feel the same. Sure, she was the Royal Scientist or whatever, but that's no excuse. And once they got to the end, they almost ended up getting a call through Lyra as well, though they hung up before they could say a word. I'm not sure if I want to know how calling works though, so I'm not going to think about it right now.

"I wish the lizard lady would at least call us if she's going to keep doing this," Jacob seethed, while Lyra just sighed.

"All this is probably just because she's nervous. She'll be able to call soon I assume," the cyborg soothed, trying to make sure that there weren't any tensions flying right now, because she'd really hate having to deal with that. "Anyway, we should get going. The path through Hotland awaits!"

With a bigger drive than the rest, Lyra, Frisk, and Elliot all took off with a new drive and excitement. With Claire laughing a bit, the other three continued on. This was going to be one long, steaming trip.


	27. Take the Stage

"Wh...Why'd it get so dark in here?" Fiona seemed to be clinging to Frisk at the moment, though the eleven year old had only just realized who it was, due to the pitch black covering the room. She couldn't see any of the others around her, but she had hope that they were still there. It was only strengthened once she heard a ringing. The phone! That meant, at the very least Lyra was still with them. Though, that wouldn't have surprised anyone, considering the kindhearted nature of the girl. 

Alphys' voice rang out once the call was answered, without any surprise to anyone. "H-Hey... It's kind of dark in there, isn't it?" the lizard asked. 

"Yeah, but we're okay!" Elliot assured. "I bet we can make it through this dark place, no sweat!" 

Someone in the room sighed heavily, and knowing the context behind it, Frisk could only assume it to be Jacob. "Well, if you really want to crash into everything in the room, be my guest. But at least give the rest of us the ability to navigate properly." Yeah, it was definitely Jacob beginning to speak. "Doctor, is there any way you can turn the lights on in here?"

"Y-Yes of course! Give me a minute to hack into the lighting system," she replied. It didn't take too long for her to do as she'd promised, and you could see that there was a prominent frown on Elliot's face as the lights came up. When everyone was aware of their position though, no one could quite tell what was going on. Though obviously, they could tell it was bad by the next words coming from the receiver. "Oh no..."

"OHH YES!" Here came our favorite robot host, even though you all may like Lyra a bit more. I don't know, it's not my job to know you. But no matter what, the show continues. "WELCOME, BEAUTIES, TO THE UNDERGROUND'S PREMIER COOKING SHOW!" After those words were spoken, a banner appeared in front of the apparent stage they were on, reading the words "Cooking with a Killer Robot." Why am I not surprised?

Taking Lyra by the robotic arm, Mettaton continued to explain what would be happening in this oddball show. "WITH THE HELP OF OUR FAVORITE LITTLE SOUS CHEF, AND OUR HELPER BEAUTIES OVER HERE, WE SHALL BE MAKING... A CAKE!" 

"I mean, it can't be that bad, can it?" Claire glanced around at the others. "Why don't we just play along for now, and see what happens?"

"I guess so..." Fiona mumbled, her eyes downcast, as she soon received an encouraging pat on the back from Frisk. 

"MARVELOUS, SO THEN, FOR YOU TO HELP OUT, I'M GOING TO NEED YOU KIDS TO GRAB A FEW INGREDIENTS FOR ME. THESE ARE, SUGAR, MILK, AND EGGS! HAVE FUN DARLINGS!"

Quickly enough, the children all grabbed the things they were supposed to, while the ones getting the most attention were Claire and Fiona, since they could definitely get some ratings points with how the elder girl lifted the younger one so she could reach the counter. They may be able to use that later... But no matter! For now, they just put the ingredients on the table. 

"ASTOUNDING, JUST ASTOUNDING!" the robot cheered. "THOUGH I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! I FORGOT ONE IMPORTANT THING!"

"What's that?" Frisk asked, cocking an eyebrow, before things unfolded in front of the group. A chainsaw formed into Mettaton's hand, making it blatantly obvious as to what the missing ingredient truly was. 

"A SOUL FULL OF DETERMINATION, OF COURSE!" And after that phrase, the entire phrase delved into chaos. Frisk and Fiona where screaming like banshees, as the eldest two were trying to quiet them down. And Elliot was just making all sorts of a ruckus, without even knowing the reason as to why everyone was screaming. Lyra though? Don't worry, she had a plan.

"Everybody stop!" Lyra yelled, causing the girls to quiet down, and for Mettaton to stop, just for the moment at least. "Uh... Maybe we could try and find some sort of... determination substitution?" The robot had a positioning to which he would probably be glaring at her if he were to have eyes. "Uh..! Uh! I mean, what if.... They had a determination allergy..?" Lyra then cringed, having no clue as to how effective her little strategy ended up being. 

"That's... BRILLIANT, DARLING! I CAN'T BELIEVE I DIDN'T THINK OF THAT BEFORE!" he exclaimed, letting the kids rest easy, as Mettaton continued to explain. "NOW, YOU LOT WILL HAVE TO GO GET IT THOUGH. YOU'LL FIND IT TO THE RIGHT OF US." And, what he gestured to was exactly that. To the right, past the true set of the place, you would find a can of determination substitute, which they were all happy to find. "NOW, YOU HAVE ONE MINUTE, GO GO GO!"

"One minute? Sounds easy!" Elliot said, rushing over to the right side of the stage, to which the group followed behind. And soon they found, that the task may not be as easy as they thought. 

Where the can stood, was about fifteen meters up from the stage area, meaning that it would be a chore to climb the whole way to the top, especially since they only had a minute to do this. Fortunately, it seems that Lyra had a plan. "Just leave it to me, everyone. I have an idea!" she chirped. Her solution though, was definitely a lot different than most would expect. 

At first, you would think the girl was floating, but upon closer inspection, you would see that she, in fact, had rockets underneath her heels, taking her up the fifteen meters quicker than any one of them could climb. You could hear the others cheering, which I would say is a good encouragement for someone trying to save your life. Up... And up... And up... Until finally, the child reached the can, and came right back down to the group, grinning widely. 

"Astounding..." Jacob mumbled under his breath, mostly for the technology though. The help she did for Frisk was good too though. Definitely, of course he did. Mettaton didn't seem to have expected this though, even if he should've known about the additions the doctor put onto Lyra. But that's none of my business. 

"OH... MY... GOODNESS... DARLING, THAT WAS A SHOW STOPPER. SO MUCH, IN FACT, THAT THE CAKE MAY NOT EVEN MATTER AS MUCH AS THAT! SO, TO CONCLUDE, THAT'S ALL FOR THIS EPISODE! ADIEU, BEAUTIES!" And for his dramatic exit, he did something similar to his first entrance into their lives, by crashing into a wall, breaking a Mettaton shaped hole into it as he dashed off, probably to plot his next segment. 

"Goodness, Lyra! How did you know that would work?" Claire asked, the teen's excitement growing a slight bit.

"Well, I guess I've learned a lot of his tricks by now. After all, I've been down here for about thirty years now, so I guess I've had some time to learn how to deal with him," the cyborg replied, in a way that seemed to shock Frisk quite a bit. I guess she really didn't know how things worked around here. Well, I don't blame her. It was a pretty freaky process as to how these kids came to be. 

"You don't know yet?" Jacob asked, looking as though he were about to laugh, in which he was soon stopped by Claire glowering down at him. "Well, I suppose I can tell you about it then. That is, if you so wish." Frisk eagerly nodded, at least growing curious into how this worked. At any rate, there should be no way that a ten year old looking girl should be saying that she's been in a place like this for thirty years or so. 

"Alright... So a story you may know, is that long ago, after the war between humans and monsters took place, seven magicians sealed the monster race under the mountain that we're in right now. What you don't quite know, and what those on the surface are unaware of, is that the barrier's statement led to a few residual side effects. Some of them were noticed right away, such as a new surge of magic coming to the monsters. Yet another was more... residual. The residual magic I speak of is one that only affects humans that pass into the mountain. These humans, such as myself, and now you, are unable to age because of this magic. Of course, such a thing doesn't make us immortal, due to how we can still be injured, or contract an illness. Since you're new here, you wouldn't be able to recognize it, but a whole lot of us have been down here for decades, unable to move forward in our body's natural processes. I'm unsure as to why all this was established as well, yet the only way we could know, is if we can find a way to go back in time and ask those mages ourselves. But for now, we're left wondering, and in the dark."

Frisk's face turned quickly to a look of pity for these kids. Or were they even really kids? Well, you all probably consider me as such too, even though I'm older than most of the ones here. But do as you please, I suppose. "Wow I... I'm so sorry-" she mumbled, unable to look at the group without feeling a pang of sorrow considering their situation. 

"Oh, don't be sad! If we get to live forever, that makes it fun!" Elliot said, trying to lighten the situation up a little bit, and adding on a shoulder punch for good measure.

"And at any rate, we should keep moving forward despite this. There are lots of puzzles we'll have to go through in order to reach the end of this area," Jacob mused.

"Um... I dunno-" Fiona whispered, before Elliot grabbed her square by the arm.

"Don't be nervous! We'll be fine, come on!" the boy persuaded, before blatantly stopping any attempts at moving her with words, and instead began pulling her along, just as he did in Snowdin. Sharing a look of humor, and disappointment, the others followed, unknowing of the death traps- I mean mind games, they would get to play in their quest to reach the end of this long and laborious journey.


	28. The Arachnid Jamboree

After all the puzzles and shops, it was hard to believe that the group had finally stumbled upon a place that seemed relatively quiet. No monsters were bustling around here. It was peaceful, and yet you could feel that something just wasn't right about it. As the group went, the only sound between them was the sound of the smallest member eating a doughnut. A spider doughnut, to be exact. Other than that, it was dead quiet, at least until they all stumbled across a large, menacing door. It stood quite tall, and there wasn't too much of a wall around it either. It may be dangerous to open, but there didn't seem to be another way around it, right? 

"Anyone else get the feeling that this is some kind of trap?" Claire asked, her eyes darting around everywhere else. 

"Dunno, but then again, I don't see any other routes on my maps of the place, so we don't have much of a choice," Lyra responded, seeming to do a double check on her previous statement, which was understandable. I wouldn't want to go in there either.

Without another word, the group of six went through the door. Well, they began to. Yet, while only Jacob and Frisk were on the other side of the door...

SLAM! It shut behind the two of them, and wouldn't open from either side. And trust me. Even these kids weren't dumb enough not to check if they could open it up somehow. Even if Elliot was banging on it, continuing to try, despite the futility of the situation. "HEYYY! OPEN UP!" the nine year old yelled, pounding on it some more without fail, before Frisk finally spoke up.

"No, I don't think it's going to open..." she mumbled. "Maybe there's a key in here somewhere, we can try to find it!"

"I guess..." Fiona sighed, not seeming at all happy that she'd been separated from Frisk. Understandably too, Frisk was almost like her new mom now. 

"We'll keep trying the door from here. Please, hurry back," Claire added, as more echoes of kicks and bangs filled the room, alone with a grumbling that quite obviously came from the perseverance soul of the room. Even Frisk couldn't help but notice it a little.

"Is it really that bad that you're stuck in here with me?" she asked, the boy snapping to attention, before shaking his head. 

"No, no, it's not that just- Stay close, for both of our sakes. I have a bad feeling about this-" he replied, Frisk nodding before slowly doing as she was told. And yes, the walk up was slow. It became slower still when they felt the webs at their feet, and began to hear some whispers from all around the area. 

"Ahuhuhuhu..."

"Did you hear what they just said?"

"They said some kids would be coming through here."

"But one of them /hates/ spiders, just like the one we found earlier."

"Pity, I thought they'd be of good taste~"

"Earlier..? Frisk, we need to get out of here-" Jacob hissed, especially since they hadn't even realized that they had moved as far as they did. And now, they must have found out something else. They couldn't move anymore, the webs around them had grown too sticky. And in the panic, the young guardsman let if slip his mind that he had a sword on his belt for emergencies.

"I'm stuck! I...I dunno-" Frisk wheezed, beginning to grow hysterical.

"But you know what the worst thing I heard is?"

"I heard..."

"That they're very stingy with their money."

As the room became a bit brighter, it was finally revealed who else was here. Unsurprisingly, there were a whole group of spiders around. Yet, it seemed someone else was there too. A tall human boy, stuck to a web and scared silent. While Frisk had no clue who this was, it seemed at least Jacob did. 

"Wait, Aaron?! How did you-?" Jacob exclaimed, before the voice from before, revealing itself to be the lead spider, cut him off. Boy, was she a big one, too.

"HUSH! Do you really think that your taste is too refined for our pastries, kids?" she asked, giggling as the words came out. "Well, you'd be mistaken. I think that your taste... Is exactly what this next batch needs~! Who knows, maybe then the red would go with the yellow, to make a sweet orange flavor, wouldn't you say, boy?" 

"GET ME OUTTA HERE-!" the teen, probably known as Aaron by the way Jacob had been speaking earlier, screamed at the top of his lungs, as he tried thrashing out of his prison. It was no use of course. That stuff gets really sticky. It wasn't as though the two of them would be doing much at any rate. The battle had just begun. 

* Muffet traps you!

"Ugh, I can't believe this-" Jacob mumbled. We can't quite go anywhere, so the best we can do is see how she fights." With a nod from Frisk, she opened up the usual [ *ACT ] menu, and noticed one option that caught her eye. If the spider wanted her to buy the pastries so bad, maybe money was what she was after? It was worth a shot, so fishing out 10G from her pocket, and earning a side glance from both boys in the area, she paid the monster. "What are you-"

"Just go with it, maybe she'll hurt us less if we give her money!" Frisk replied, cutting off a perfectly good question, to which he sighed and let her go with her own plans. After all, she'd made it this far on dumb luck, and disappointing me. So she did it, and then something odd began to happen, even if something similar had gone on before.

"Oh, don't look so blue, deary~" Muffet chirped, turning to Frisk with a creepy smile. She'd eyed Jacob briefly, before looking at the girl again, pouring what looked to be some mix between poison and tea, due to its color on her soul. And yet, nothing completely terrifying happened. No death, thankfully. That would be a whole mess that I'd have to deal with soon after. No, but it did turn her soul a lovely looking shade of purple, which made Jacob's eyes go wide, even if no one could see it from behind the thick glasses he wore. "Purple is a much better color on you!" 

Not only had Frisk's soul turned purple though. There were also only three lines she could move across in order to avoid things. While the concept didn't look quite as hard as I made it sound, she had quite the tough time with it, getting hit with rock hard pastries left and right. HP was being knocked off, even if the attacks weren't even supposed to hurt as much.

Jacob let out a heavy sigh once the turn was over, before coming up with an idea that might actually help out with the situation, to which he took Frisk by the arm before she could make another one of her decisions. "Frisk, before you do anything, I have an idea, that might save you from getting killed again," he whispered, to keep it out of anyone else's earshot. 

"Yes, what is it?" she asked, eyes widening, as she didn't want to have any more of those flying croissants whack her in the face, which was understandable.

"Let me flank you on each side that's needed. If you can't block one, scream so I can catch it."

"But wait, won't that hurt you?"

"You forget that I have this." Slipping the sword from the hilt he kept on him, even after taking most of the armor he wore off earlier before that so called date with Undyne. "Just keep doing what you need to do, and just let me know if you need help."

Frisk nodded in that direction, as she continued on with the battle. And their plan actually worked for a time. Frisk didn't get hit nearly as much as she was the first round. It was worlds easier until Muffet called out her pet. It got hard then, but even still they found a way around it all. Jacob had started clearing up the path above, so Frisk wouldn't have to worry too much about dodging, and more on running away from the giant, man eating cupcake. Yes, you heard me. A man eating cupcake. I know it's weird, just don't worry about it. 

Anyway, the battle raged on a while, before the spider finally grew tired of the shenanigans unfolding. "Alright, alright, fine! If I knew it was going to be this much work in order to just add a different flavor to a pastry, I wouldn't have done it!" she exclaimed, sighing and letting the two out of the trap of the spider's web. "Okay, you win. You needn't be in our pastries if you don't like. But if you change your mind... Ahuhuhu~" Without even thinking to finish her sentance, she slipped back into the darkness, leaving Jacob and Frisk alone, with the justice soul, who was still caught in her web. 

"Now that y'all's little party's over, can ya /please/ get me offa this thing?" Aaron asked, grumbling as he stared down at the duo with a frown. Oh hey, I almost forgot he was down here. At any rate, they didn't hesitate in doing so, even if Jacob continued to laugh about this scenario, and hoping no one else was paying that much attention. 

"So, how did you get stuck in there anyway?"

"Long story, really don't feel like tellin' it. And who's this youngin' over here?" Aaron was pointing at Frisk, who was strangely quiet about the whole endeavor. 

"Ah, that's Frisk- She's new to these parts. You know, the one we've been preparing for?"

"Oh-! I...I see-"

"You were really screaming like a girl up there though, probably higher than Lyra's range."

"Oh shaddup, damnit-"

As their conversation continued, Frisk quietly thought about one thing, and one thing alone. She was stuck on the words that Jacob had said, or at least one of them in particular. When he'd said that she shouldn't want to get killed "again." Again. There was a first time, sure, but how did he have any clue about it. No one else seemed to know how the resets worked. So, how did he? Even as the others had come back from the other room, and Fiona was hugging her leg with a lot of vigor, she stayed quiet. Everything grew louder except for her. 

She was going to need to talk about this later... Not now though. No matter what, now wasn't the time.


	29. Cyborg of the Opera

The group definitely had a lot to talk about as they moved past the spider's den. Mostly, the other children were trying to play catch up with the justice soul, along with learning about what had gone on inside that room. Of course, even if Frisk wasn't exactly into the conversation, as she had a lot on her mind, I think I picked a few things up from this. Basically, someone sent the kid to get some products to the capital, and the spiders ended up taking him because they could "smell his fear" or something like that. It's weird, I know, but it's best not to think about it. 

Yet, soon there was an unusual set up around them. Instead of the usual backgrounds of lava and rock, the group had stumbled upon an environment coming right out of Romeo and Juliet. There were towers with vines spiraling around them, and a beautiful view all around. Some of the girls (ie, Claire and Fiona) couldn't help but be taken back by it. But Frisk knew that Mettaton had to be written all over this place, and she didn't like that one bit. So, in one desperate attempt to escape, she tried to run toward the other end of the room, but she was stopped in her tracks by an electric field appearing before her, crackling to life, and instantly stopping any progress Frisk might have made forward.

Most of the group had stopped as well, unsure as to what was going on. But Lyra was looking toward one of the towers with a knowing look. Obviously, she knew exactly what was going on, and most of you should too. The obvious was quick to happen though. Mettaton soon came out to stand right where Lyra had her eyes fixed, yet no one but Frisk had a clue until he began to speak.

"Oh~ Dear, don't go out there!" the robot cried, in the most dramatic way possible.

"No, father, I must! I have to see... My one true love..." Lyra replied, before moving on, and looking to Frisk, soon grabbing her hands and smiling dreamily at her. A small tune of a harp played in the background, before the cyborg opened up her mouth to sing.

"Oh my love  
Please run away  
Monster King  
Forbids your stay

Oh you must  
Live far apart  
Even if  
It breaks my heart

They'll put you  
In the dungeon  
It'll suck  
And then you'll die a lot

Really sad  
You're gonna die  
Cry cry cry  
So sad it's happening..."

You could probably tell that Lyra had been stifling her laughter for most of this song, especially due to her movements. She was spinning and twirling Frisk around, as if they were on a dance floor. It was quite adorable, well to everyone except for Aaron, who was nearly fuming. It was his cousin that this was about. But no, he wasn't going for Frisk, or for Lyra on this. No, he was shouting right up to that tower. "HEY! HOW COULD YA MAKE MY LIL' COUSIN DO SOMETHIN' LIKE THAT?!" he bellowed, causing Fiona to flinch and hide around Claire's legs, while the sixteen year old gave the smaller girl a reassuring pat.

"Oh, I suppose you, the older brother type, would be disapproving. Well, all the more reason for her capture then~!"

"Wait, what?!" Frisk asked.

"I didn't mean-" Aaron tried to interject, but it was too late. The determination soul was already being sent down from a random hatch on the floor. Strangely, no one else was going to join her, but down again into the pits she went...

~~

Once she had hit the ground, she knew exactly what she was in for. Another trap caused by the wonderfully terrifying robot, that no one had ever asked for or needed in their lives. Frisk was quick to get up though, since falling wasn't a strange occurrence for her anymore, since this was what, the third time it happened now? 

Even if she hadn't gotten up right away, there was a motivator in the form of a wall of fire at the edge of the area she stood. "Well, try not to get burned, darling!" Mettaton shouted with glee, from the place where she'd taken the fall, on that stage. Now, Frisk knew that it was time to run as fast as she could. 

And run she did, sprinting forward through the area, until she reached what looked to be a puzzle. A puzzle looking oddly similar to one she'd noticed in Snowdin, with the bone brothers. Sadly, she didn't have any clue as to how it worked, since it's explanation was so long and unreasonable, especially with it being useless in the end. But without any fear, she leaped into the puzzle, ready to try with all her might.

Any drive that she had though was riddled with futility, as the girl couldn't get more than a few steps into the puzzle without being stopped and pushed back by one of the tiles. Even worse, the flames were getting closer and closer, as Frisk was just stepping around and unsure of an escape route. 

Just as all hope was lost, what seemed to be a shining light for Frisk appeared. Well, it wasn't a light per say. It was just that the fires had stopped, and the machine had stopped coming toward her. The girl let out a sigh of relief, although she couldn't help but stare at it for a while, instead of trying to move forward. The staring just kept going, until Mettaton came flying back toward the girl, without an idea on what had just gone down. "Hey, what exactly is all of this?!" the robot asked. When Frisk didn't have any reply, as she had no clue what happened herself, he just gave an indignantly robotic sigh in her direction. "Alright, I suppose that if the machines aren't quite up to date, then you should be free to go for now. But the KIND and GENEROUS Mettaton does expect to have some payment later. Toodles~!" 

After that contradictory speech, the puzzle at the girl's feet deactivated, and Frisk didn't waste any time in continuing on. After all, she didn't know how far this would go, or how easy it would be to catch up to the others, but she was sure she could do it. 

She ran, and ran, and ran. Not quite as fast as she did when she was running from Undyne some time ago, but she still tried to be as fast as she could without letting out too much energy. Hotland was a cruel mistress, and she couldn't die again. Not again. And dealing with her whine about it for an hour or so wouldn't be fun either. 

The good news was, she didn't end up dying, so no long session of ranting and crying for us. Instead, she found herself stopped in front of a building, and a big one at that. Its atmosphere was much different than the rest of the Underground, which was what caused her to stop in the first place. That, and the fact that Jacob was standing right in front of it, looking right at her. At least she was sure he was, though it was hard to tell with his thick glasses. 

The point was though, that the two of them were both here by themselves, especially since Frisk had a lot to talk about with him. Of course, unlike any other rational human being, she didn't get straight to the point. She just began to dance around the topic. Well, they both were, but I digress.

"Well, look who finally decided to show up-" Jacob began, quite nonchalantly.

"It was a bit hard catching up, since I didn't know where I needed to go. I had to run all the way here," Frisk explained, although she was still out of breath from everything she had to do in order to make it up here. "But where's everyone else?"

"Oh, they're just in the hotel. Sans went in there with them, but I decided to wait for you. I never did like that skeleton's puns anyway."

"Huh... Well, it's good timing, because there's something I really need to talk to you about."

The preteen looked almost taken aback by Frisk's statement. Not for any hard reason, especially since he was fairly quick to regain composure. Not at all like Frisk, who almost seemed frantic to get the words out, that being a mix from having to run so fast, and from finally being able to speak her mind. "That's good then, because I'm out here for the same reason."

"Really? Well, I guess I'd rather rest a little bit first, so do you want to go inside, or what?" 

"Gladly."


	30. The Knowledge of Time

The atmosphere of the resort was a lot more peaceful than one would think. There was the silent hum of chatter across the dining area, although Frisk and Jacob kept silent for a while. It wasn't awkward for it's own sake, it was just that neither of them quite knew where to start. 

"So..."

"So..."

"Frisk, do you want to start?" Jacob asked, causing Frisk to snap to attention. "If it's the same thing I want to talk to you about, then I'd like to hear your take on it first." The way he'd said it made it so Frisk couldn't refuse his offer. At any rate, maybe if she talked first, then it would be easier for them both to come across with their points.

So, as she let off a small sigh, Frisk began to speak. "I... I don't know how, but I've always been able to see these glowing stars. But no one else has been able to, not even Elliot, or Fiona, or Claire. Just, nobody. I always thought I was going insane or something, but once I had... Died in Waterfall, as you seem to know. And I spoke to this girl, and she seemed to be able to watch me. I guess it didn't matter much what she looked like, but gosh I... I didn't know that there was so much more to the Underground than I first thought. And now you know about these travels back in time? How?"

That spiel left the two quiet for a moment. Frisk was trying to understand what had come spewing out of her mouth, and Jacob was trying to figure out how he was supposed to respond to all of that. The silence stayed prominent for at least five more minutes, before the boy had cleared his throat, and thought of his next topic. "How do I know? Well, they've been going on for a lot longer than you've been around, Frisk. I've never known the cause of them, and for the first parts, I thought that it must have been you doing them the whole time. But, once I realized the patterns of their appearance didn't match when you came here, I realized at first, it must have been something, or someone else controlling them. As for the other parts, since I've never done a reset myself, since I've never been in control of them, I can't say for sure who the girl in that place is, so sadly I can't quite help you. Just know, that I've known for a long time, and I can tell you other things if you just ask on the subject."

Frisk blinked as she took in that message. It was a lot to find out about. Especially since that meant the power she had wasn't consequence free. Sure, that didn't mean much to a good kid like her, but it was still something to keep in mind, especially if she wanted to do everything again, or even if she was bored with the happy-go-lucky style. I wouldn't advise it, but to each their own. It's none of my business what she's doing, since it isn't like I could stop her from here.

"Well, I guess I want to know how you began to see them. Like, how did you know that you weren't just having a major sense of dejavu?" Actually, that's a pretty good question. After all, the girl had taken a moment to understand how the save stars had worked, and how she made everything go back in time. How did he know as well? There were some reasons, of course, but none that she could wrap her head around. At least she couldn't do so without any sort of explanation.

"I suppose that it did take me a bit to notice it. First, I thought each occurrence of it was a strange dream, and that I shouldn't be worrying myself over it. Then, I started to realize that having the same dream over and over again, and dreams inside of dreams just didn't make any sense. So I realized that it had to be a sort of temporal phenomenon beyond my understanding, and even farther from the minds of others.

"It was even odder when I tried to ask the others about it. Lyra, Claire, Aaron? They all came out looking at me as if I was mad. And hell, for a while I thought that I was. But what really sold me, was seeing a figure touching a save star. I couldn't tell who it was, or what it was. After it did though, everything went back to the previous day. After that, I never questioned it again. Though you're the only person I've ever met who has ties to it. Unless someone else isn't telling me something..."

"Oh..." Was Frisk's only response when she first realized he was done talking. It was understandable, what were you supposed to say to that. I'm sorry? She didn't know how bad that was supposed to be. She had only known this existed for what, three days? Well, it hadn't been long, so sympathizing with someone who'd understood this for as long as Jacob would be difficult. "That sounds like it must have been hard for you. Was the person who controlled the ability good with it though?" 

Oh boy, that wasn't going to end well. I know fully well who was in control before Frisk was, and let's just say I've witnessed a few murders in that vein. In the same one, so had he. "I'd... Rather not talk about it. If you must know a bit of it though, I'll say that whoever it was made me wake up from the sight of corpses," he replied, making Frisk shudder.

"I'm... I'm sorry, just forget I asked please."

"That's fine, don't worry too much about it, especially since it isn't as if you killed those people." 

Though he said it was alright, I could tell quickly enough that the entirety of it was bad. I've seen the corpses myself, and while I'm not so affected by it, his sights weren't as jaded as mine. Still, Frisk decided to take his word for it, and kept quiet on the matter. After all of the knowledge though, they were now brought toward a stalemate in conversation. Now that the two of them had such a large amount of knowledge dropped on them. That was until the two of them heard a bit of a ruckus. And that of the familiar kind as well. "Um, what's all of that?" Frisk asked, her eyes darting about to find out what the source of it was. 

"Not sure, but I'm curious, want to go check it out?" Jacob asked, offering a hand to the girl, probably in order to help her get up. She nodded, taking the hand in response, which in turn made the two of them move. 

She couldn't help but enjoy the slight walk up to the hotel lobby area, but that was where the enjoyment stopped. What the duo was looking at was an utter madhouse. A madhouse of children they knew, yet probably wouldn't want to associate with right now.

"Well, I suppose we'll have to do something about this," the boy sighed, with Frisk nodding in reply. 

Won't this be one wild ride?


	31. Can You Really Call This A Hotel I Mean There's Little Kids Running Around Everywhere

The scene unfolding before the two preteens was quite chaotic. Elliot had ended up setting the plants that decorated the lobby up to make his own obstacle course, and he was trying to do all sorts of things around them. Aaron was at the front desk, trying to flirt with the hand lady who ran the thing, and promptly getting annoyed because she wasn't saying anything. (FYI, she can't talk. She doesn't have a mouth.) Claire was in the fountain, seeming to think that it was a hot tub of sorts. Or maybe just a pool, you can't be sure. Fiona? Well, she was nowhere to be found, and Lyra was just in the middle of the room, lying on the ground in defeat. At least she wasn't doing anything stupid, so it could be assumed that whatever these three were on, she didn't have any of it.

Thankfully, Frisk's first instinct was to go to Lyra, since she seemed like the only person that the two of them could talk to at the moment without being caught in any chaos. So, since Frisk was still holding Jacob's hand, she led the boy toward the kindness soul, in order to find out what they needed to know, before moving on to this mess of children. 

"Hey, Lyra, what happened?" Frisk asked, giving the ten year old a concerned look. Lyra blinked when she heard someone speaking, and sat right up in order to make some sort of response to this. 

"It's a long story, are you sure you guys are up for it?" the cyborg asked, as the two others nodded. "Alright then, let's start from the beginning..."

"After we let Jacob stay behind and wait for you, we went into the lobby with Sans, who just told us we could explore the place on our own if we wanted. That was... A big mistake. First, Elliot thought that doing "whatever he wanted" meant that he could run around in here without anyone watching him. Me, Claire, and Aaron tried to stop him, but after a while, the other two gave up, and went to get something to drink. Those drinks didn't do good stuff to them, and that's why they're being weird. But Fiona? I can't find her anywhere in here, so I don't have any idea what's going on with her, or if she's gotten in trouble- Or... Or!" The girl began to hyperventilate, before Frisk put a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to calm her down. 

"It'll be okay... We might need your help to get everyone calm again, but we can do it. Okay?" she asked, as Lyra nodded in response, starting to stand up from her position on the ground. Jacob couldn't help but look a little bit astonished at how well Frisk was able to cope with the madness at hand. It was as if she knew all to well how to work through these situations. 

"What's your plan then, Frisk? Should we take care of everyone together, or split up and handle each one on our own?" Jacob asked, after a moment of watching everyone still at their own antics.

Frisk had to think on it for a moment, still taking her time to look at everyone, before she came up with something to say in response. "Well, it would be fine to split up to take care of Aaron, Claire, and Elliot, but once we have all of them done, we should look for Fiona together. Especially if she tries to run off, it would be a good idea to work together in order to find her. The only question now, is who will take who?"

"I can take care of Aaron, he's my cousin after all, I should be responsible," Lyra replied.

"I'll take Claire myself. I know her the best, so I bet I could do something to help," Jacob added.

"So then I'll take... Elliot-" Frisk didn't look to happy with her own candidate, mostly because she knew how rambunctious he could be when it came down to it. Though she also realized that she might be the only one who could deal with him, since she had the more experience around him, and had gotten to know him the best. "Okay, then let's split now. If you need more help, don't be afraid to call one of the other two." And the sane ones had gone their separate ways, leaving Frisk to deal with the nine year old, who was still jumping and moving around. 

"Hey! What are you doing there?" Frisk asked, not quite sure on the approach she was taking, but it wasn't as though she could turn back now. She knew that he wouldn't really let her. 

Elliot skidded to a halt as he looked to Frisk, though he didn't have any sort of bad intentions with the look on his face. "Oh, I was just trying to get something to do in here. It's so stuffy in here, you know?" 

I mean, he wasn't wrong. The whole environment didn't suit the little boy. He grew up in a place where it was more okay to move around, to tumble around a little bit. So of course, he wanted to be able to do that anywhere he went. And while it's not the best way to process things, at least he was having fun. 

"Yeah well uh- We're going to be leaving the hotel soon, so can you maybe clean all of this up, and wait for us?" she asked, looking as though she needed to plead with him. Of course, he was also looking a slight bit sour about the thought of cleaning up the plants on his own. That was, until he thought of an idea. 

"Hey! Why don't we have a race. From one end of the hotel to the other! Loser has to clean up the plants!" Well, clearly, since Frisk is a sensible, rational person, she'll just try and tell him to do it himself and-

"Oh, you're so on." Of course. Why am I not surprised. The nine year old grinned, as he jetted over to the far end of the room, to which Frisk soon caught up.

"We'll start at the count of three!" Elliot yelled, making at least a few heads turn in his direction. Probably including Lyra and Jacob, with no surprise to anyone. Frisk prepared herself to start running, since she knew that he'd be a tough opponent to beat.

One...

Two...

Three!

And the runners were off and going, first Elliot was in the lead, then Frisk, then- Okay, yeah, I'm bored of this already. So, to no one's surprise, Elliot won. So that meant Frisk was stuck cleaning up his mess. But hey, at least he wasn't going all around anymore, so that was good news. He was just standing by the door leading to the CORE, as Jacob and Lyra approached Frisk once she was done.

"Um, what was all that about?" Lyra asked, looking a little bit concerned about that whole race, even though Frisk seemed nonchalant about it.

"He said he didn't want to clean up the plants, so he said we'd race to see who did it. So, I lost-" And unsurprisingly so. Jacob couldn't help but stifle a laugh at her situation, to which the girls didn't take too much notice of. "So, what happened with Aaron and Claire."

"Well, Claire fell asleep pretty easily once I got her out of the fountain."

"And Aaron just needed me to tell him how the desk lady wasn't interested before he left, and joined Claire in the nap pile."

Frisk couldn't help but be jealous with how easy their own plights were, but at least it was done, and now all they had to worry about was... Fiona.

"Well, that's good, so where do you think we should look for Fiona first?" Frisk asked, as she looked around different areas that they may not have checked. 

"Um, I guess the hotel rooms might be good. After all, she probably isn't in the dining area, because it's loud there as well as it was in here," Lyra mentioned. It was a good assumption. An open room would be a great place to hide in if things were getting you down, especially since no one would want to bother you in there.

"Alright, then let's search the area," Jacob said, making the initiative to move in the direction of the rooms, with Frisk and Lyra right on his trail. Once they were there, the three of them took note of multiple rooms, four of them to be exact. "Well, I know that she should be in one of these. I think it would be good for each of us to check a room." The girls seemed to agree with his plan, mostly because no one else was coming up with anything better. Each child split off into a room, and Frisk, in particular, went into the second room in that row. 

Luck was on the eleven year old's side, since she soon noticed a tiny lump in the middle of a big bed. Something that small had to be Fiona, right? Well, even if it wasn't, adventuring in a bed as big as this would be a fun experience. After getting herself under the covers, Frisk tried to see if she could confirm Fiona's presence in here. "Um, hey... Is anyone in there?" There wasn't much of a response, besides a bit of shifting from the other lump. Maybe it was the one that Frisk was searching for. Well, she could only really speak again in order to find out. "Marco!"

"You know my name's Fiona-" the younger girl spoke, making Frisk perk up a bit. Yeah, she was definitely in here. Judging from the sound of the small voice ahead of her, Frisk started moving more and more until she could finally see Fiona for herself. "Oh... Hi, Frisk-" she said, her tone downcast.

"Hey- Fiona, what's wrong?" Frisk replied, a frown forming on her face. "The noises are gone, so you don't have to worry about it hurting you anymore, alright?"

"I know but... it's something else now, but it's stupid-"

"No, it can't be stupid. Even if it is, you can tell me, and I won't laugh, okay?"

"D...Do you promise?" 

"I promise, now go on... It's alright."

"Well... I keep hearing and seeing everyone try to hurt you when you keep going and... And I don't like it- I don't want you to die. You're my best friend Frisk, I want you to be around with me-" 

Frisk's expression grew concerned as she listened to the child's story. So it was their plights that were making her nervous. Well, she'd known for a long time that she would have to face the king, and that there would be obstacles blocking her way from getting home. But she hadn't thought about the other's feelings in it. She hadn't even realized that the others were worried about her, especially Fiona.

"I didn't know I... I'm sorry-" Frisk said, looking away from the child for that moment. "But... I want you to know that I promise that I'll keep everyone safe, including myself."

"But, what about when you get to the scary goat man?" Fiona asked once more.

"I don't know, but I do know that I don't want anyone to get hurt. And the two of us are going to get to the surface together."

"Really?"

"Yeah... And only the CORE is standing in our way..."

*HOTLAND ARC: E N D


	32. The Core of the Dangers

On the path to the CORE, outside the hotel, it almost felt as if a wind were blowing, even if that couldn't be possible inside a mountain. Nonetheless, the atmosphere felt heavy, as it weighed down on the children without mercy, making it hard to breathe, even if there wasn't an outside force to cause this. They all knew what lay on the road ahead, but it was obvious that no one wanted to say anything about it. The end drew near, but that end was something hard to accept, especially as it concerned someone like Frisk, who had continuously done good in this place. The end planned out for her wasn't befitting, and yet, that end drew ever nearer. And in a reverent silence for that fate, they stood. And for a while, no one was able to lift the curse of that silence of their shoulders.

Finally, after minutes of waiting in that heart-dropping quiet, it was Aaron that spoke up, finally finding the words that no one else could dare to speak. "We're gettin' close to the castle, huh," he said, as hums of agreement filled the place. "Though I wasn't with y'all in the other places, I know that the CORE is really dangerous. Probably more dangerous than everywhere else, so I gotta know. Are y'all ready for what comes after this?"

For a while, no one answered. Were they really ready for this? Because for most of them, it wasn't the CORE itself that was the problem. Save for Fiona and Frisk, all of them had been through there before at least once. But even if some wouldn't admit it, they feared for Frisk, and what would happen with her when they hit the end of this place. But Frisk, the most foolishly determined as usual, was ready to speak in front of the crowd.

"I know you guys might all be nervous about all this, and I don't blame you. All this quiet is giving me the creeps too. But hey, all of us have been through a lot. Fiona, you and me got pelted with bones, but we're okay. And Elliot, how about when the three of us almost got skewered a couple times. The dummy, the spider lair, literally everything Mettaton did so far? We all got through it, right? With all seven of us here, there isn't a lot that can stop us. So what do you say? Are you ready for this, or what?"

With the end of her speech, it was easy to see that the tension and fear of the room had practically disappeared. A chorus of agreeing words filed in from everyone. Even Jacob, who knew that even she wasn't completely invincible. Even if most of them knew that she didn't know the full truth of those words, that she would have to hold to at the end of the road. They knew better than she did, and yet, they so foolishly believe in her. I'm almost impressed...

"I'm glad we can get goin', but our phones ain't gonna work in here. The electric currents block 'em or somethin'. I dunno why, but they won't work till we get in the capital, so it's best to turn em' off."

After that, with a bit of reluctance, Elliot turned his phone off. I suppose that talking to Papyrus was fun for him, so I guess I can understand why he was acting so bummed about it. Lyra, on the other hand, had begun messing with the metal attachment on her arm, which had made a few lights turn off around her head. Those who didn't know her well met her with a few stares of confusion. How was she doing that, and what did it do?

It took her a lot longer than it should have for her to notice that people were confused, to which she looked apologetic as she figured this out for herself. "O...Oh! Is something the matter?" she asked, looking around at the faces looking back at her. 

"It's nothing too serious here, I suppose there's just a bit of confusion on what you're doing right now-" Claire articulated for the rest of them, even if she had some sort of clue as to what all the button pushing did already, due to context clues. 

"Well, since there are a lot of parts of me connected to similar waves of the phones, I'm just turning a few things off so nothing bad happens. I've done it before, and it doesn't do anything bad," she assured, which at least seemed to keep everyone from looking at her funny, which made it better that she was done. 

With another look around the group, Aaron let out a sigh. There wasn't much else left to do, nothing else that he could stall for time with. Even if her bold words were empowering, he couldn't help but keep his anxieties around, since there was a lot that could go wrong in the CORE. But maybe he should trust her, if everyone else was going to. But I'd go with him on that, I wouldn't trust this kid with anyone's life, no matter how spunky she is. But that isn't my problem, and I don't think that it's his either. "Since it looks like we're all ready, then let's get goin'. Time's a wastin'!" he edged them on, leading the way to the next hallways in the area. 

When the group had made their way inside, the area was a lot less foreboding than it seemed on the outside. The walls and floor glowed with an electric blue that pulsed throughout the entire area it put them at ease, that at least a bit of their journey wouldn't be so dark and gloomy. There was even a mechanical hum that sounded and surrounded them, to make things less quiet. It did remind Fiona of something that made her frown a bit, and yet, she was okay with this.

"'Kay then, so to get to the upper floors, which'll make our journey easier, we just gotta head up this elevator right here," Aaron directed, his arms directing toward the obviously placed elevator in the middle of the room. Using that would make their journey much easier, wouldn't it? Sadly to say, that if things went as easily as people hoped, we wouldn't have as many exciting stories to tell. "So, who wants to do the honors?"

Frisk was quick to raise a hand, while she ran toward the elevator, and pressed a button. So they waited for it to come.

And waited. 

And waited.

And waiiiiited...

Until a sound came from the elevator. Well, not a sound, but an automated voice. "We are sorry, but the elevator is under maintenance today. To get to your destination, you must travel through to get to the upper levels. We apologize for this inconvenience." A collection of groans filled the room, as Elliot punched a wall in annoyance of this news.

"Dang it! I wanna see the king man noooow!" the nine year old whined. 

"I don't think it'll be too hard to get up there though, it's a relatively quiet place most of the time. People don't tend to come out here much," Lyra assured, as she looked toward the different paths to take. "If my memory serves me right, I'm pretty sure we have to take the left path in order to get any further."

"Pretty sure you're right on that one, youngin'," Aaron affirmed. "Let's set off then. The sooner we get movin', the sooner we can get to the end." No one had much of a protest for this, although Fiona didn't seem too happy with being out here where monsters could get to them. It was an understandable fear, even if Lyra and Aaron tried to reassure everyone. 

The hallway seemed peaceful enough. Not too many monsters were around, like the two of them had said earlier. But there was another reason for this quiet here... A more sinister reason, that none of them would be detecting right away. A reason that would set the tone for the rest of their trials here, which wouldn't be as calm as any of them would've hoped. 

And that, was the appearance of two shadows behind everyone, coming out and attacking without any sort of warning.

In other words, an ambush.


	33. The Human, The Rabbit, and the Crow

The ambush noted before just happened to be the first of many. So many monsters came, only to be spared by Frisk. Monster, after monster, after monster. It grew more and more exhausting as the group kept moving. Even if they weren't exhausted by heat, the group realized that they needed a rest no matter what. They needed a good place to hide from everyone so they could collect themselves, and have a rest. Even Elliot, who was usually the bouncing energy of the group was tired... So, they soon found what they were looking for, a nook in one of the calmer halls, that could fit all seven of them. A collective sigh of relief came from them, as they were finally were able to relax. And yet, Frisk was able to tell something about them all. They all looked completely tired of all this. They must be so used to having rest, and finding solace in the Underground. Frisk couldn't help but think as though she ruined it for them. Making them go on like this... Some of them were even younger than she was, so it couldn't be fair to drag them around like ragdolls if the experience was bad for them.

Yet, Frisk also realized that it was too late for her, or anyone else to turn back after all this time. The only way that she could boost morale anymore, was to try and talk to everyone. Try to find out, and know how they were doing, in case they needed some support as the journey continued. So, as soft chatter filled the area, Frisk set off to her self assigned mission, hoping that she could lessen the burdens on their shoulders, and make their journeys through the Core easier. To make her job in finding the first person to help easier, Fiona was already trying to get the determined soul's attention by pulling on the leg of her shorts, a classic and childish move. But it caught her eyes nonetheless, and brought the spotlight to the smallest one, even if she looked quite a bit nervous to speak to the older girl.

"Hey... What's up, Fiona?" she asked, frowning at how reserved she was being about it. Was there something wrong that she didn't want anyone else to know about? That would make sense, but still... There wasn't anything she could tell Frisk that she couldn't tell anyone else, right?

"Can... Can you tell me a story..?" the seven year old replied, her eyes having an embarrassed look in them. "You don't gotta, I guess I just wanna hear one? And you're really good at talking and stuff, so-!"

"Alright, alright, I can tell you one. You don't need to worry about it," Frisk replied, as a big smile made it's way onto the little girl's face. She sat down with her legs crossed, looking up at Frisk with eager anticipation. She didn't know where it was going to go, but Frisk had an idea forming in her head, about what she could do to put her small friend at ease for a while.

"Once upon a time there was... A peasant girl, living in a village. She had a wonderful family, but the rest of the town wasn't so nice to her, due to the color of her skin. So, she ran away from home, trying to find a place where she belonged, where she could be happy, with people she called her friends. So, as she was running, she found a big, deep cavern, that she fell into, and where she met a tiny rabbit, who talked to her. And the two of them became friends, going on all sorts of adventures, and making for friends with different animals in the process..."

As the story continued, it grew more and more obvious that the story was about the seven of them, and her feelings about them, and their travels together. Except, it wasn't all that obvious to Fiona, who was merely invested in what Frisk was trying to tell her. The analogy did reach the ears of the other five, who had grown a bit interested in her words. It was the only real interesting thing to happen that didn't involve the group running for their lives, after all. It wasn't long before everyone had gathered around, which was away from Frisk's knowledge. She was busy up in her own head, telling their stories, and how it had impacted her as a person. It was really well done, but... Well, I think that you all should hear the ending instead of my rambling. Even I thought it was well done.

"With her rabbit friend at her side, she waved to all the animals she'd met on her way, with a sorrowful look in her eyes. All of them but the bunny were too happy here for her to take them away, so they would have to stay down here, for now... But, she took the rabbit into her arms, as she went outside, to see the light of day again. 'Look, it's the sun!' the human exclaimed, to her small friend. The rabbit simply nodded in awe, as the two of them went off, in a world that was unknown to them both..." 

Frisk opened her eyes, after her story, and soon came to notice everyone having circled around her, smiling at her. At first, her nervousness about how they felt about it was evident, but she soon realized how they'd enjoyed it. Especially, since most of them knew what she was going for, even if she didn't know everything that could happen here. But, there was still the little voice, that wanted to know more.

"But um... What happened to them after?" Fiona asked, the hope shining in her eyes.

Frisk had to think of the right answer for a while. She didn't know the end to their story, she hadn't gotten that far yet. She only knew of what she hoped would happen, for all of their sake. So, if she believed things would be okay, then they would be, right?

"Well, they lived together, and they were happy... They were happy, and didn't have to worry about anyone hurting them anymore," she replied, bringing a smile to the child's face. And suddenly, Fiona gave Frisk a large, enveloping hug, that didn't take long to get returned. Yeah... If she just believed in it, then her wish would come true. 

After the hug happened, the group began to disperse again, and even Fiona had began to fall asleep, with the worries she'd previously held finally having gone away. She was happy, and that was all that mattered to Frisk. Well, that was until she noticed Jacob staying behind, and looking over at her, beckoning for her to talk to him. Since Fiona seemed alright for now, she didn't seem to want to resist. The two of them went to a more unoccupied part of the nook they were staying in, which left Frisk to wonder what they were going to be doing here. Well, there wouldn't be much harm in asking him, since this was his idea, would it? 

"So, uh, what's going on, Jacob? Do you want to talk about something, or-?"

"Are... Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Jacob's question was quite sudden, causing Frisk to be quite confused. I mean, what was she doing? What was going on that made him ask about it?

"Wait, what do you mean?"

"I just... I want to know that you're really ready to challenge what's coming up ahead of us. I'm not sure if any of us can help you, so..."

"I think I know what I'm doing- But why are you asking? I mean, I've never heard you sound so worried before, it's kind of strange."

"Oh! Well, I suppose I've just grown used to you is all, and you're helping out everyone else, so it's nice to see you around. You're a wonderful friend too, I suppose."

Frisk hadn't expected him to say any of that, with a bit of heat coming to the boy's cheeks as he realized what he said. Frisk couldn't say much, or ask about it, before he excused himself from the situation. 

Trying to keep her mind off the complex set of events that had unfolded, she looked around the group, and noticed that everyone seemed a lot better than they were before. A lot happier, and not at all mopey about what was going on. It was nice to see, and yet, it was a bit different too. So Frisk let herself rest a bit, going next to Fiona, and closing her eyes, hoping that she could stay in this calm area for a while with everyone, and to not be caught by any of the other monsters that might be roaming around. 

'And even then, the human found herself attached to the crow, who pined instead for the deer. Even if the deer was much older than he, and he wouldn't plan to do anything to confess those feelings, the only wish of the girl would be to win his favor.`


	34. Lights, Camera, Begin!

It had been a while since the group had taken their last stop in the CORE, and the trouble they had run into began to decrease exponentially during the course of their journey. To them, it probably meant something, and yet no one could put their finger on what it was, so no one kept their head on it for too long.

As they continued, Lyra seemed to grow antsy, before she stopped moving ahead altogether. "Um... Hey everyone. I think I left my extra battery pack at the place we stopped. Sorry to be a bother, but you all can keep going without me. I'll catch up, I promise!" she altered. No one else seemed to have time to stop her, because once she stopped speaking, she began running off. Everyone else was at a loss for word. Although they could trust her on finding her way back, the way she left in the first place was startling in itself. 

"Do you think she'll be okay on her own?" Claire asked, shooting a look of concern in the direction that the kindness soul had left in. 

Surprisingly, it was Aaron, who was usually found to be concerned for his younger cousin's safety, that stepped up to the plate to defend how she would find her way back. "I'm pretty sure the kid knows this place inside and out. It'll be alright, I can assure y'all that, but let's keep things slow and steady, just in case. Is that fair?"

No one seemed to have any objections to it, since if he wasn't complaining, why would any of the rest of them? If he had faith in her, after knowing her for this long, then they should too, right? It wasn't long before they continued on with their journey. After walking for only a bit longer, they stopped near a large iron door. They all got the feeling that this was a trap, it had to be. A door in the middle of a hallway reeked of traps. But where else were they supposed to go? There wasn't any other way forward, and going back after they came all this way wouldn't feel right. 

Frisk didn't feel a lick of hesitation before she tested the door, going right through it, and shouting about how it was safe before the others looked among themselves. These things still didn't feel right, and yet it still looked safe enough. When that was shown, that just meant they could go forward, but they still needed to be careful. "Stay behind me," Aaron whispered to the group, as he followed Frisk inside the door. But only Claire and himself made it inside before...

Slam!

The doorway was suddenly blocked by iron bars. Jacob and Elliot began pounding on the bars in a feeble attempt to get them open again. The three on the other side were attempting the same thing, while Fiona could only stand around in shock, looking ready to burst into tears. Who put this in place, and what was it supposed to mean? The answer became clear as two television screens, one on each side of the bars, flickered to life. 

When those same screens were fully powered on, it was the face of Mettaton himself that appeared on them. Of course this was one of his workings, why had they not seen that earlier? But, they couldn't even think of hurting him from where they were, so the most the most they could do was merely watch, and figure out what the purpose of the trap was. 

"Hello, darlings!" he began. "For this part of our show, I would love for you all to join us on the dance floor, but there's only enough room for three more. Sorry beauties, but we can't make too much of a mess in here, now can we? But don't worry, you'll be able to see all the action happen from the T.V.s. For now though, I'll have to say, toodles~! See you for our next show, Attack of the Killer Robot!" 

The name itself was enough to give anyone chills as the T.V. went dead. Aaron sighed as he slid down, with his back on the bars. Had he really led the three of them into a trap of this magnitude? What an idiot! Claire just seemed frustrated, as she stared at a wall with a murderous intent. Frisk wanted to help, but for once, she couldn't think of a good way to motivate anyone. It was her best trait, but her mind was merely blank... 

Thankfully, Frisk wasn't forced to speak when she had run dry, as Claire's frustration turned into a new resolve. "If he wants a show? Then fine, we'll give him the best darn show of his life," she spoke, a firelight shining in her eyes, telling the world what she wanted to accomplish. Frisk wasn't sure if she should be happy about this, or terrified. With the girl's speech, Aaron found the ability to pick himself up again, as the two of them continued into the hallway, disappearing into the darkness. Frisk was about to do the same, until she was stopped by a voice. 

"Hey, Frisk?" Jacob asked, as Frisk turned to look at his nervous face. She had never seen him look that way before. That look of concern for people was new to her. 

"Yes, what's wrong?" she replied, positioning herself closer to the bars, so it would be easier to talk with him. "Well... I-... Just, be safe, okay?"

Frisk felt her heart flutter as she heard that sentence. She kept it to herself as she merely nodded. "Alright, I promise," she replied. "Fiona, don't worry about me either! And don't cause trouble, Elliot!" Those final goodbyes that came from the three they were leaving behind dissipated as she herself headed into that hallway.

While the two others were a little bit confused, when Frisk decided not to tell them, they didn't press for details. After all, they had more important things that they should be keeping their thoughts on, like getting to the end of their path, which seemed to stretch on for longer than they would've thought. No one spoke as they continued to walk. There wasn't a lot to say, as they still had the same goal in mind. To get past Mettaton, who had been giving them all grief for far too long. After a long bout of walking in silence, they finally made their way toward something else. A room with a hexagonal shape to it, and dim lighting to keep the scene visible. 

Though, as they had a chance to look at it, the lights suddenly came off, leaving them in total darkness. They had to find each other, in case something happened to them. Frisk was first to feel around and cling to someone's legs, which she recognized to be Aaron's, since she felt her hands on a pant leg. 

Hoping that Claire would be soon to join them, she shut her eyes tight, praying for this to be okay. They were scared, but what came next was sure to frighten them even more. 

The next sound to come was the sound of a spotlight turning on. Which would be relieving, if they didn't see who was under it too. That's right, it's the robot, the myth, the legend himself. Mettaton. 

"Oh! Good, you children finally made it! Of course, it's good that we have more backup dancers, but Frisk will have to take the stage. It's a pity, the two of you have such good talent..." the robot mused, before getting to the real program. "At any rate, it's time to start our show, isn't it? Lyra, hit the switch, and we can get things started." 

Wait... Lyra! She had known about this the whole time, hadn't she. But, knowing her, she probably wanted to tell them, but she was forced not to. A good secret keeper, that one is. But at any rate, she didn't look at three below, as she flipped a switch on Mettaton's back, and the stage began to be covered entirely in fog. 

"Ooooooh yeeeeees~"


	35. Dance of Death

With time, the fog began to clear around Mettaton, revealing something that none of the three had expected. In the wake of his usual, box shaped body, the robot appeared now with a human-like exterior, even with metallic hair to go with it. None of them had the slightest idea of how to handle themselves after this new revelation, but that wasn't the only thing new. Lyra, at the DJ's board, had swapped her usual sparkly dress for some clothes more fit for dancing, such as a neon pink tank top, and spandex shorts that went to about the knee. She even had her ribbon tied into a headband. In short, the two of them looked nothing like they were about to kill someone. No, they looked more ready to dance than anything else. And even if it was strange to look at, the three couldn't help but feel somewhat grateful for this.

Yet, it couldn't be right to calm down, as neither of them had clearly stated the purpose of why they were dressed in such a manner, or what was going on here. Yes, they should definitely be worried about that, because what was about to happen next, none of them could properly prepare for. What one would call a "drama scene" from Mettaton.

"Well, beauties... Now you all can finally see my inner beauty, thanks to this darling over here. Now, I never knew when I would need to use this form, but I suppose desperate times call for desperate measures. So, instead of going out with a bang, I believe that a sparkle is the best way for you children. I'll be giving the chance to sparkle to you right here, and right now. So get ready! After all, I'm going to make your last moments... ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!"

He then brought his hand up, his complete form was shown to them, with all it's gadgets and fixings to go with it, the one that seemed to distinguish itself the most being the pink, heart shaped capsule on his chest, and the bright pink boots that were anyone's dream to tone at such a level. The other thing that was now shown to them, was an audience, screaming with all sorts of delight and excitement. That was who they would be performing for, along with whoever else was watching in their homes. Along with... Jacob and the others. "Now, Lyra! Get the music going!" he exclaimed, as the girl nodded, and went to a stereo system/ turntable, and began to put something on. Something that reminded Frisk of both a concert, and a runway show. It was something that the other two found hard to digest, but hopefully they would understand it time. It wasn't really that important anyway, considering that this wasn't the main goal. The true purpose was to make it out alive, and maybe even in style. And no matter what, Frisk was going to make it, even if it killed her.

* Death By Glamour: BEGIN!

Mettaton and Lyra already warmed up, so the three before them had the first turn. Though, it was already certain that Lyra wasn't really a part of the battle, for a good number of reasons. She wouldn't kill anyone, and she was probably only there as a backup dancer for the robot. So, Frisk already had the idea to keep her eyes on Mettaton for the most part. And yet, as she watched the two of them in wait, an idea formed in her head. Claire seemed to reciprocate this exchange, as she was already tapping her foot along to the beat. Aaron, though was left squarely in the dark, since he could only watch what was going on, giving them a pointed look. Claire stifled a laugh once she finally noticed, then took another look at the dance floor. "Follow our lead," she said, before she and Frisk headed out closer to the cameras, merely to strike a pose. Aaron, taking notice that the audience was eating it up, decided to quickly join in, helping out the effort in itself.

This didn't do much to help them from Mettaton, which left the fourteen year old confused. "That didn't really do nothin', what're we s'posed to do now?" he asked. 

"Keep following!" Frisk piped. "We had to do something like this when we fought a dummy in Waterfall. Follow whatever attacks he makes, and keep dancing with us!" Aaron, who forced a lump down his throat, nodded, and readied himself for the oncoming attacks, and boy, were they plentiful. Throughout the many turns that they were given, and the many turns that they had to fight, they continued a dance that might have been predictable by the enemy, but it was still a great run. The onlookers found it amazing, even if they were still keeping their hopes in favor of their idol, and Lyra was continuing to grown with excitement as she watched everyone's moves, a small hope forming inside that they could actually do it. That even Frisk could survive the killer robot, and that she could do it without violence. Well, the part about violence was most likely a long shot, but that wouldn't be important. 

Aaron's confidence grew by a lot as well, as he grew better at both dodging, and shooting at some of the projectiles with his own soul. Unlike the usual timelines, it seemed that there wasn't a change of soul for the others, but that just made it more fun. Either way, they still had a dancing shooter in their arsenal, so it didn't concern the girls in any way. The traps in the attacks, that would've made it hard without some form of gunslinger were easily avoided with the new skills they were practicing in this very room. Well, they weren't quite new, but they were good to practice, especially considering how Aaron didn't get many chances, since the sound of gunshots were known to scare a lot of people, and they could hurt. He didn't want to do something in that vein. 

Though, even if they all had fun, and they all had confidence to back up their spirits, the fight did drag on for quite a while. Aaron and Frisk were merely out of breath, considering they weren't trained for this like Claire looked to be. She seemed completely alright. And even then, the humans were completely fine, save for a couple of scratches from some projectiles they'd failed to avoid. Mettaton, on the other hand, didn't look as well, even if he was the one who started this charade in the first place. His arms and legs had completely fallen off, leaving him on the ground, only able to do half of what he could at the start of the fight. He was steaming at the ears as well, it wasn't a great sight for the eyes of anyone. Seeing a public figure reduced to a steaming chunk of metal would definitely screw with me, even if I'm probably screwed up enough as it is. 

It was finally, after a while of seeing the robot feebly continue to work, despite nearly everyone's concern, and Lyra's cries of fear for her partner, he finally stopped, yet not for the reason you may think. "Ah? Look! All of you, look at those ratings!" Those words couldn't help but earn a sigh of sheer disappointment from Aaron, and a lot of hushed gasps from the rest of the audience, as if this was something that came as a shock to anyone. Like, wow, a star is getting a viewer milestone, how amazing and rare. You hear the sarcasm, right? It isn't just me? Okay. But, at any rate, even if he wasn't worried, the others surely were. Before Frisk could ask anything, Lyra had come up, putting herself right next to Mettaton. 

"Yeah, yeah, this is really great, but are you sure you're gonna be okay?" Lyra asked, making it hard to watch, as she looked as though she was about to burst into tears. And yet, Mettaton shook his head, putting on a proud, and brave smile. 

"Of course I'll be alright, hasn't Alphys told you about this form?" he asked, bringing shock to the three others who were still on stage, waiting in silence, and confusion. "This form of mine drains battery quickly, so this was bound to happen eventually. I'll be fixed up before you even know it, so don't worry for me."

Even with his coaxing, and hoping for everything to be fine, the others couldn't help but go right near him, trying to see if there was anything that could be done. "Are you really sure there isn't anything that we can do to help you?" Frisk asked, her question almost sounding like a plea for Lyra's sake. But once again, the robot shook his head.

"No... I know that the spare batteries are in the lab. By the time you get there and back, even with any shortcut you might take, I'll be out of power." That brought a saddening air to the entire studio, even if it was only temporary, or so they thought, a lot of people in that audience wouldn't know how to live without this entertainer. "But before I go off the air, due to our ten thousand viewer milestone, we'd like to take some calls from the viewers at home who'd like to talk with me, before I go off the air for a while. Lyra, you can use your speakers as a phone... Now, call the number on your screen if you wish."

It wasn't too long before the phone began to ring, to which Lyra made it answer, and brought herself closer to Mettaton.

"...Hello..?"


	36. A Lonely Fan's Wish

"...Hello..?"

While the humans in the room weren't particularly affected by the sound coming from the phone, Mettaton made a different face, as if he recognized the monster who was talking through the phone, much better than anyone else there could. None of them could quite place what was going on though, seeing as they didn't know a single thing about what Mettaton's relationships, or life entailed, especially before he took the stage as a performer, least of all Frisk. But they listened, at any rate, curious as to what might have him so hung up over a single person, a single caller!

The robot before them didn't have much to say, unlike the usually boisterous and talkative persona that he always had up for the masses. And yet, the monster on the phone continued to talk, with an uncertain tone and voice about him.

"H-Hi Mettaton- um... I really liked watching your show..." they began, their voice seeming a lot more timid, and quiet to what Frisk would expect from someone who was a fan of the show. And yet, she didn't really have the knowledge to think too much about it, since she had only been down here for two weeks at most. The others weren't quite as concerned about the fan on the phone, but more about the way that Mettaton was acting. Especially Lyra, which made the whole situation that much more disheartening, with the idea that she knew the most about him, saying a lot about his usual actions.

"My life is pretty boring but... Seeing you on the screen brought excitement to my life... Vicariously but... I can't tell but I guess... This is the last episode..? I'll really miss you, Mettaton... Oh..! I didn't mean to talk so long... I'll hang up... I guess......." And then, the line went dead, and a look of realization came to the Lyra's face, as she noticed Mettaton look even more dejected than he was when the call first began. She seemed to have some sort of idea as to what had happened, and went right up to him, hugging the torso of what he now was. 

"That was your cousin... Wasn't it?" she asked, watching as the robot nodded, with a look on his face that looked so ashamed of himself, so unlike his usual self, that it made Frisk nearly tear up at the sight. 

There was a pause all across the board, as if even the audience before them was holding their collective breath. But Mettaton, with his knowledge of how this business worked, he shook his head yet again, trying to shake off the events that had just transpired. "Er... I'll be taking more calls!" he said, and it wasn't long before there were even more callers, even more people that were coming in with speeches of their own.

"Mettaton, your show made us so happy!""Mettaton, I don't know what I'll watch without you.""Mettaton, there's a Mettaton-shaped hole in my Mettaton shaped heart!"

And the calls themselves, seemed to bring something else up as well. They all had things of their own to say, and while Frisk couldn't make out a single word on their own, the message that was brought with them was clear enough. They wanted Mettaton, their star and their hero, to stay with them. And even to the right of Frisk, she could see Aaron and Lyra hugging each other with a ton of feeling. Feeling that could touch Frisk to her very core. They mumbled to each other, which revealed something about the two of them that she hadn't known before now. They were cousins! She could also hear them talking about how much they cared about each other, and how they never wanted to be apart like Mettaton and his cousin always had to be. With all that, swirling around the stage, a finish finally seemed to be made to it all. 

"Ah... I- I see something new now... Thank you to everyone who's called. Everyone here..." Mettaton began, before turning to the children, making them look up at him. "Darlings... Perhaps, it would be best if I stayed down here with everyone. After all, humanity already has stars and idols, and they even have one in the making right here!" he exclaimed, looking at Lyra, who couldn't help but get bashful. "But monsters..? This is the only show they have, hm? There's no one here to fill my shoes... To give hope to the underground, that's grown scarce over the years. That's the only way it should be, right? So... I think I'll delay my big debut for now, but don't let it stop you, beauty!" Once again, this was directed toward Lyra, who shook her head, looking right on the verge of tears.

"No..! I want to stay here too! I have my friends... And the only family I care about right here!" she said, her eyes moving in all directions. "I wanted to stay no matter what but... You staying makes me want to stay even more!"

"Is that so..? Well, you really are a devoted girl, to everyone here, aren't you? And strong, just like the beauty that guided you here." It took Frisk a moment to realize the last comment was directed at her. "But your friend... Frisk, was it? I believe she could even get past Asgore, if she put the will into it. If I can't protect those humans who are only civilians, who may get caught in a crossfire, then well? I think you'll do a lovely job of it yourself.

"And Lyra, if you will... I would like you to do something for me, only for a short while." 

Lyra nodded vigorously, an urgent look on her face. She didn't know what he might need, but all the same, she wanted to know. "Anything... I'll do anything to help!"

"Well, I want you to run the show for me, just for a bit," he replied, causing everyone's eyes to go wide. "It's nothing serious, of course! I'm not going to die, or anything brutal like that. It's merely that, you know how the energy consumption of this form works... It's poor, to say the least. I'm nearly out of battery power. And while of course, it can be fixed, I don't know how long Dr. Alphys will take, so I need you to do it for me, alright?"

"But..! But! I don't know how to fill your shoes!"

"It's okay... There's nothing to worry about! It will only be for a bit, and you can sing and dance like a star already. I'm not worried at all about how the fans will receive you... So knock 'em dead... All of you darlings. And to everyone watching, from home, or the audience! You've been wonderful! I love you all!"

And with that, the lights in his eyes went completely dim, with Lyra unable to stop herself from bawling her eyes out over the exchange. I don't blame her either, since Mettaton was someone she put a lot of emphasis on. She wasn't used to running anything by herself, and she really cared about the robot, as well! Aaron held her as she cried, with Claire taking up on helping as well, trying to assure her that everything would be okay, and that she would do a wonderful job. Frisk looked at Mettaton once more, thinking of what she could do herself, before she heard the sound of more footsteps, coming from the hallway that she and her friends had used to get here.

Voices as well, came from there, with Frisk recognizing them to be the others, Fiona, Elliot, and Jacob, along with Alphys, who was having a hard time keeping up with the group. 

"They're in here!" Elliot said, as he was the first to show up, followed by the other kids, and then a very tired looking Alphys at the rear. They all looked on at the whole group on the stage, as the group on stage looked back, though without Mettaton for obvious reasons. 

"Okay... O-Okay, are you all alri-" Alphys began, before realizing what she saw up there, the limbless, and deactivated Mettaton, although the robot didn't have all that many scratches on him. "Oh my god... Mettaton!" She ran up, making Frisk back away as she checked around, if only to make sure of what had really happened. The others followed suit, though they weren't as concerned with Mettaton as they were with the other kids. 

"Are you guys okay..?" Fiona asked, timidly. "You look really tired..."

"We're fine, dear... There's nothing to worry about." Claire replied, petting through her hair in order to calm the small girl down. 

Meanwhile, Lyra was getting up from the hug, starting to feel a bit better herself, in order to make sure Alphys would be okay with everything that just transpired, especially since she could probably do the best job of it. "Um... Alphys? What happened with Mettaton is nothing too bad, he just ran out of battery..." she started, though Alphys wasn't completely convinced because of everything.

"B-But what happened to his limbs?! They're all over the place..."

"He overheated I think... When they flew off, I noticed steam coming off him... It was probably because of the energy stuff that doesn't work well when he's in this form," she replied. "But I really am sorry... I shouldn't have flipped the switch when he said to. Cause Frisk could've gotten hurt! And Mettaton's battery's out! And...And!" Now she was the one looking a bit unsure of things, though the lizard woman shook her head.

"No... it's alright, you did everything that you could..! And no harm was really done, you know..? I'll just... Need a minute first..." At Alphys' request, Lyra slunk back over to the group of kids. Frisk found herself wanting to help Alphys too, seeing about how distraught she was over her robotic friend. But, as she was about to go ahead, she felt a pair of arms wrap around her, knowing that it could only be one person doing that.

It was confirmed when she heard his voice, though it was a lot more frantic than she was accustomed to. "Are you alright?! Are you sure you aren't hurt? What were you THINKING?!" he questioned of her, before she piped him down a bit with a "shh"

"It's okay... Nothing bad happened. And I'm glad nothing happened to you either... Everything is going to be okay, I promise..." Frisk replied. Even though she realized she was treating him like she would Fiona, neither of them payed much attention to that.

"Please though... Don't do anything like that again... Okay?"

"Okay..! But um..." She seemed to feel the grip of Jacob's hug a bit harder now, now feeling a bit of the guard training in his bones. "Can you let go now? I can't breathe and well... I have something I have to give Alphys..." With a small wheeze, the boy nodded, and let go of her, letting her go up to Alphys, who was still over the same spot as before. 

"Hey... Miss Alphys? I have something for you." Alphys turned toward the eleven year old once she heard that, and saw the letter in her hands. Grabbing it instinctively, she let out a sigh. 

"This is um... Really tightly sealed... I might need to get out something for this." And with that, she pulled out of her pocket... A Chainsaw Knife?! Jeez, why couldn't I have one of those? With the blade whirring, everyone seemed to be watching it go, until it was completely open. And then, it was read. "Oh..! You... really feel this way about me?" That was the first sign that something was off, but Frisk decided not to do anything with it. "Then... I-I guess it's decided! I will go on a date with you! I have to pick out something to wear, and...! I'll be at the lab!" she exclaimed, before running off. Frisk couldn't even get a word in. No one else seemed to understand what happened, either. But Frisk soon understood, and let out an exasperated sigh.

"I guess I failed Undyne..." she mumbled. Someone's going on yet another hangout/date. This should be lots of fun to watch...


	37. Nerd Dating

"I know that you want to tell Alphys that it was Undyne who told you to give her the letter, but did you really have to drag us along with you to do it? I mean, you said it was for moral support, but to be frank with you, you've never needed support to talk to people before," Jacob sighed, as he, Frisk, and Lyra all trudged through the mud and dampness of Waterfall. 

"Ohh, there's no reason to be so down about it. I mean, come on! I love the rain clothes Mettaton picked out for me before today's show!" Lyra chirped as she twirled around in rain boots and a poncho. While she was enjoying it, Frisk couldn't help but be worried about this date, for a good plethora of reasons. One of which, of course, had to do with the fact that she had to tell Alphys at some point that it wasn't her that wrote the letter, but Undyne. While she didn't think it would break her heart, she just didn't want her lizard friend to feel as awkward as Frisk herself did. That wouldn't be a good way to end a date, after all. 

Once the trio had arrived at the dump (which Jacob had tried to talk Frisk out of agreeing too, since it was a horrible place to have a date at in the first place), Alphys was already waiting for them, donning a black and white polka-dotted dress, which Lyra couldn't help but grin at the sight of. "Wooow, Alphys, you look really good!" the girl chirped, causing Alphys to look in that direction, a small bit confused.

"Hmm? Frisk, is this some kind of double date thing? (I don't even think those two like each other...)" she asked, the two beside Frisk trying to hold in their own laughter. Especially Lyra, considering that she could've sworn she told Alphys that she was gay.

"What..? Oh! No! They're just here for emotional support. After all I um... didn't know how this would turn out, you know?" Frisk covered, earning a thumbs up from the other two. "So, what were you planning on doing?" 

"O-Oh! Well, I was thinking that I could give you some stuff before the date to um... Raise your affection stats and stuff, but I couldn't really find anything I thought you would like," Alphys replied. "So, then maybe...-" 

Before Alphys could say a word, she looked in another direction, and a gasp escaped her. Though, the three didn't seem to notice until Alphys jumped clear into a trash can. "Undyne..?! She can't s-see me here...-" she wheezed, before closing the lid. And it wasn't until much later, when Undyne was basically right in front of their faces, when the group noticed her. 

"Hey, punks! Say, Frisk, do you still have that letter I gave you? I just realized if you deliver it uh... Something bad might happen to the universe so like! Give it here so I can do it!" Undyne replied, as Frisk was forced to look at her other two friends in order to think of something that had a chance of getting past Undyne's bullshit sensors.

But, with a prolonged sigh, she realized that there was only one thing she could say. A small fabrication of the truth, just enough to not put her in a bad spot, but still be the truth. "I... I don't have it-" 

"What?! Uuuuuugh this is hopeless! What are you even doing here anyway?! And have you seen Alphys at all?" 

"Well...-" Frisk began, before Lyra cut herself in.

"We're going on a dumpster adventure. The best adventures can happen at the dump, after all!" she went, saving anyone else from having to respond, and hoping that it would at least pass the test. "And we saw her on our way here, or at least I think I did. Maybe you should go check and see!"

"Alright, kids. I'll get to looking then, and I'll see you later! Have fun on your dumpster adventure!" And with that, she was gone, everyone left on the scene letting out a sigh of relief. 

"Th-Thanks for not telling her where I was..." Alphys thanked. "But, I'm sorry too... After all, I put you up on this date, and I don't even want to date you, really... Not that you aren't cool it's just that- Undyne's the one I really love-... And you know, she's way out of my league anyway, so I guess I thought that this would be fine then..."

"Oh thank GOD-" Jacob blurted after a moment of silence was shared between the four of them. "Finally, you said it already!"

"What do you-?" 

"Well..." Frisk began, still unsure of her words. "The truth is, I didn't write that letter. You never let me explain it, but it was Undyne who wrote that for you, not me..."

"R...Really?!"

"Well, duh! It's obvious that she likes you, we all know that!" Jacob retorted.

"I-I didn't!" Alphys began pacing around the dump water, looking more afraid than she ever had. "Oooooh, what am I going to say to her... If she comes by again, what should I do..?!"

"There's only one thing I think you should do," Lyra stated, with a sigh. "You should tell her the truth. How you feel and all that, and how you are as a person. If she can't see that and still like you, then I don't think it was really meant to be."

"But..! Lyra, I know you're coming from a good place but... You know a lot about it... She thinks I'm so cool! When she finds out how disgusting I am, then well... She'd just go away from me like everyone else does..."

"Though, you'll never know until you try," Frisk countered. 

"Try..? Maybe I should do that after all... If I don't try, then I won't ever know what would happen. You guys are right, but still, I don't even know what to say..."

"I know, I know!" Lyra jumped up. "We could make it into a stage performance! You would be yourself, and one of us would play as the lovely Undyne. It would be a beautiful play, just watch! We can do it!"

"So... You want her to roleplay with one of us?" Jacob simplified.

"When you make it sound like that, it's a lot less fun..." Lyra sighed and pouted. 

"Oh, I think I like that, let's do it! I'll go with Frisk and then we'll do it!" Alphys went with a nod, while her and Frisk stood opposite of each other, and nodded. "So um... Hey Undyne- How are you today..?"

The scene was quite short, and past this point I honestly can't even describe it. She's not even using proper grammar, Frisk is going to be the second death of me, and I don't even care who knows it at this point. And Lyra was trying her best not to call it as awful as it was. Now that I think about it, I bet Frisk was one of those rpers that couldn't actually spell. This is tragic... Why do I have to narrate for all of this. Alphys, too, is unintentionally killing me. This is awful. I hope this ends soo- Oh! There's Undyne! It couldn't have happened soon enough, as she was witnessing the lizard woman make an entire scene in the middle of a dump. 

"WHAT did you just say?" she asked, causing all three of the kids to back up, and just watch this happen. Lyra even seemed to be filming this part with her mechanical eye. 

"O-Oh, Undyne! Um... Hi!!"

"And what's with the dress? Is this a special occasion or something? Or... Wait- Are you two on a date?!"

"Yes! I mean! No! I- uh! Really? We were just romantically roleplaying so I could know what to say to you..."

"WHAT?!"

"I mean..! I-I mean... Undyne? I've been lying to you-"

"ABOUT WHAT??"

"Well... everything, if I can be honest right now. Like remember that special seaweed that I told you to guard? It's really just something I use to make ice cream... And the human history cartoons and books I have? That's just some comic books and T.V. shows I like. And those times that I tell you I'm busy with work? I'm just eating frozen yogurt in my pajamas... And also..."

"Alphys."

"I-I was really just trying to impress you- I wanted you think I was smart, and cool, when I'm far from either of those..."

"Alphys..." Undyne patted the lizard girl on the head

"I just... Think that you're neat, okay?"

And, now Undyne was down for the hug. "Alphys... Sh..." And then... the fish woman slam dunked her into the trash can, causing the entire peanut gallery to lose their minds. "I don't care that you're a nerd! You're PASSIONATE and put your ENERGY into being a nerd! But what you do lack, is confidence in yourself. So I decided that I'm gonna train you, get you to like yourself!"

"T...Train me?"

"Oh, me? I said that wrong, didn't I? Nah, I'm just gonna train you by making Papyrus do all the work." And then, Papyrus shot up from the heaps of garbage, grinning wildly and making random items fly everywhere. 

"GET THOSE BONES SHAKING!" he exclaimed, now being shown to the kids as wearing training clothes, that made them have to look away because of the brightness of it. "WE'RE GONNA JOG 100 LAPS WHILE WE YELL HOW GREAT WE ARE TO ANYONE WHO CAN HEAR!"

"I'll start the clock nerds, now get moving!" And with that, the two were off, leaving Undyne alone with the kids. And Undyne... didn't look so good. Not in the physical sense, but in a way that looked like an existential crisis was coming on. Frisk was nearly going to ask what was wrong when she started rambling about it. "She was... She was just kidding, right..? ANIME IS STILL REAL, RIGHT?!"

Jacob opened his mouth to answer, before Lyra covered his mouth with her robotic arm. "Don't you dare! Frisk, you gotta tell her! It's still real!"

And to that, Frisk nodded, and Undyne was thoroughly relieved. The tension dropped, as Lyra then removed her arm. "I knew it! I knew that anime had to be real! But anyway, thanks you guys, for taking care of Alphys... It looks like she really need it... But I have to get moving, so I can catch up to those nerds! See ya!" And with that, she was gone, and everything was back to normal again. The world was as it should be, and the relief all across the board was around. And yet, the dating didn't seem to be all over. 

"Hey... Lyra?" Jacob began. "You can go on ahead for now, I want to stay here and talk to Frisk for a bit." Lyra nodded in response, giving a little wink that Frisk couldn't understand in full before going on ahead. That just left the two of them alone.

"So? What did you want to talk about?" Frisk asked.

"Well, let's walk and talk there, so maybe we can get closer while we're still moving." With his words, Jacob offered a hand to her, and although she didn't know the real meaning of it yet, she took his hand and went off through the water, to start their little journey into whatever was on Jacob's mind.


	38. Nerd Dating Two (for real this time)

The two of them went slowly on through the remainder of Waterfall, and thoroughly untouched to boot, due to most of the monsters in this area knowing the guardsman quite well, and knowing full well that he wasn't someone who should be messed with. And now, since Undyne knew the human girl quite well, that just made life so much easier through the rest of Waterfall. While Hotland always had its challenges, they wouldn't be without cool air for too long, since they'd be right in the lab, where hopefully they'd meet with everyone else, at the least. So the walk they had was leisurely, although there was still something on the boy's mind.

While Jacob had known for a good while what he wanted to say, but the words were getting jumbled and stuck to his mouth. It was harder than usual to say what was on his mind, for usually he was great at doing that. Frisk didn't seem to notice it too much, since he hadn't even opened his mouth about it yet. She was just waiting, moving slowly just to give him some time to collect himself for whatever he wanted.

Though, it wasn't too long before Frisk became a bit confused. He wanted to talk about things, didn't he? So then, why wasn't he coming out with it? She wanted to know that much, even if she wanted him to have the space to think and talk. But maybe it was something she could help him control. After all, the idea of getting those words through wasn't something entirely difficult for Frisk herself. Even if her talking skills weren't the best while she was on the surface, they were much better these days, considering she was around so many talkative people these days. 

"Hey..." Frisk started. "Do you know what you're gonna say?" she asked, still trying to figure this out in her head. "I'm sorry, I guess I just want to help you if you think you're having trouble spitting it out."

"No, I know what I want to say I just- Can't find the right words to express it, if you understand that much," Jacob replied. "Honestly, I've had this on my mind for such a long time. It was strange, you know... I thought I would only feel this way about someone else, knowing that the feeling I had wasn't reciprocated. But then, I met you. You changed that for me. Instead of feeling something for someone who couldn't feel the same for a multitude of reasons, and had even BROUGHT IT UP WITH ME I... I had someone who might actually understand, or even have a similar feeling as me... It was nice to see it for once, you know? But I'm... I'm getting off topic right now. There's something really important I want to say, but I'm just having trouble figuring out how I'd do it."

Frisk had payed attention the whole time, at first not quite understanding where he was going with his thoughts. After all, he was a little all over the place, but it then hit her. Hit her like a truck speeding past. She now understood what he wanted to tell her, but at the same time, she wanted him to say it himself. She wanted him to say it clearly, so she wouldn't make a fool of herself later. She had to hide her own happiness of the idea though, just nodding at him, as if she was saying she was prepared to hear. "Okay then, out with it if you're ready..." she replied, having to put physical effort into staying completely neutral, but invested in the topic. 

"What I'm trying to say is that I... I have feelings for you! Like, how people do when they want to be um... boyfriend and girlfriend I... I feel like that about you."

And that was enough confirmation for her not to feel that shame and embarrassment she'd feel if she spoke a few seconds earlier. In fact, she nearly began jumping for joy at that news! Of course, she retained composure where it was important, but she similarly felt the excitement well up in her until it couldn't stay anymore. "I'm glad to hear you say that cause I... I feel the same- No, I've felt the same for a long time. Ever since we had that dinner the one time, you know? At the restaurant. I felt like I wanted to be with you, I wanted to get closer to you. And now that I know that it wasn't just me well... I'm happier than I have been in a while!" she replied, unable to keep her face from showing off the nervousness, yet excitement she felt in her heart.

It was hard to tell with the guardsman's round glasses obstructing the view, but he was completely shocked by this. As if he was expecting to have a similar conversation to the one Claire had with him those few years ago. But it didn't happen like that. He found someone who really did love him the same way. Because of course, other people he knew did care about him, but not in the same way. It was a different feeling than what he was accustomed to, he wasn't going to hide that fact. But it was a good feeling that welled up inside of him. But instead of making all of that known, he merely smiled. "Oh... I'm so glad..!"

Frisk didn't know what else to do from there... Sure, this made her feel great, but there had to be something she could do to seal this moment. Maybe, like how they did it in the movies. Maybe with a kiss? 

Without any sort of common sense, or asking for consent left in her brain, she decided that whatever happened, why not go with it? So she leaned in, just as she remembered from the movies she'd watched on the surface. She leaned in, giving ample time for some kind of sign making her stop. But it never came. In fact, Jacob seemed completely on board, doing the same thing right back. Just as their lips were about to touch, and just as they were about to make this moment true and official, they heard some kind of noise, causing them both to pull back and see what it was. 

Surprisingly, it was Elliot, running through the damp ground after spotting them, huffing and puffing as he fell out of breath. "I finally... F...Finally got to you guys..." he wheezed. "What were you even doing over there, you weirdos?!"

"Nothing!" they proclaimed in unison, earning them a skeptical look from the nine year old.

"O...kay? Anyway, there's something really important that you guys have to see, I'll tell you more about it on the way to the lab, let's go!" he rushed through and exclaimed, already beginning to go back. With a prolonged sigh, seeing as the two of them hadn't finished something that they considered to be important as well, they went up to follow him, hoping that it was something truly urgent.

Once they caught up to him, he started explaining what he could to them. It wasn't much, since he really didn't get most of it out of the conversation, but they understood a few things from his explanation. And they got the most important part set in their minds. There was a good chance that Alphys was in danger. Now that was something to be considered important. So with that in mind, they made sure to hurry.

When they finally reached the lab, out of breath and nearly out of energy, everyone else was already gathered. Frisk, the first between herself and Jacob to collect herself from that circumstance, was the first to speak out of the group. "We're here... So what's the situation, what's going on?"

"Alphys went down in that elevator, saying something about facing up to her mistakes. I feel like this means she wants to do something rash, and she could get hurt. I feel like we should figure it out. Now that everyone's here, we should go..." Claire explained. At first, it looked like there wasn't a single objection, but when they went up to the door, Lyra went up, and blocked it from being used. She looked nervous, incredibly so. As if she knew something about this place that no one else could ever hope to understand. And well, in that case you would be right.

"Are you sure you guys want to go down there?" she asked. "There's um... A lot of cobwebs, and a few really gross tapes that were recorded or something I... I don't think it's the best idea."

"But we have to help Alphys! Come on, isn't she someone YOU know really well?" Elliot interjected.

"Yeah but- But I just..." she sighed, unsure of what else she could say. "Maybe we should put it up to a vote..? I say that we shouldn't do it..."

"I'll hafta agree with Lyra on this one... We don't know what might be down there," Aaron added, earning a smile from his younger cousin. 

"Oh come on, dummies! What's the worst that could happen?" Elliot asked. "I say we do it, for Alphys!"

"For once, I agree with him," Jacob replied, looking down at Elliot and shrugging. 

"Me too," Claire added.

"I dunno... I'm really scared..." Fiona whined. "I don't think I wanna..."

"Well, that means you're the tiebreaker, Frisk," Lyra replied. "What do you want to do?"

Frisk stood there, unsure of her own decisions as she thought. She knew that no one would really be mad at her either way, knowing how all this worked. Even if she was the deciding vote, she wanted to make the right decision. Go down there, or not. Go down there, or not? She couldn't figure out what was right and what was wrong anymore. 

So in that case, it means it must be up to you all.


	39. Into the Unknown

"Let's go in... It can't be that bad, right?" Frisk replied, causing Elliot to grow excited, and Lyra to grow ever more panicked and frightened. She didn't look well enough to be going into a place like this, even though seeing the look on her face made some of the others believe that she's been in this place more than once. She may know more than she would be letting on, but they were planning to go inside anyway. Despite the warnings from before, the seven of them stepped inside the elevator, Frisk closing it in behind them.

The descent began peacefully, as all of them were waiting for it to get to the bottom. Aaron and Lyra looked to be stiff and rigid in here, as if they were waiting for something to happen, something terrifying. But no one was paying attention to those two for now, seeing as it could be interpreted as them panicking, or them knowing something. 

Suddenly, the truth of their stance became crystal clear to them, as multiple malfunction lights and screens began flashing all at once, altogether. Speaking of how the altitude was dropping, and how they were going deeper and deeper into the group, with the only hope that this wouldn't mean their imminent demise. Most of the children began to grab onto each other, except, strangely, for Aaron and Lyra once again, who were strangely calm about the whole ordeal, letting themselves nearly float on the air of the falling on the elevator. It almost felt as though they knew what was going to happen before they did, which may be one part of their original reason for being frightened of this place. Except, this didn't look frightening to either of them. They seemed complacent, as if this was a normal part of both of their lives. 

Everyone else though was screaming their heads off. Even Elliot. The two smallest were clinging to Claire, who was trying her best to keep them safe. Jacob and Frisk were doing something similar, hugging themselves tightly and with such vigor, as if they didn't wish to lose each other. Some kind of romantic bullshit I guess. I feel like I'm going to puke in my mouth just watching these two lovebirds. 

Down the shaft the elevator went.

Farther...

Farther........

Father still..........

...

Then, all at once, it stopped with a bang on the ground, pushing them all down to the ground with a force they'd never thought they would feel.

Even still, they felt the force.

That force meant they were still alive and well, although many of them could feel the pain in their rears. Yikes.

Though the lasting pain meant they'd lived through the terrifying experience, as strange as it may seem. Almost as if they were never in any sort of danger at all, and that the kindness and justice souls were correct for keeping their heads on straight, and staying their most calm as they elevator plummeted. But it forced them to wonder what their understanding of this place was. Had they been down here before? If this was the case, then why were they so hesitant to let anyone else in the group see them? What sort of secrets may be hiding inside? 

While Frisk pondered the possibilities of their situation, Jacob tried tampering, or at least messing around with the power box, before letting out a sigh. "The power's out," he reported. "It's in emergency power right now, so all we'll be able to do would be open the door. There isn't a lot left that we can try except looking for power. Unless someone else knows something about this place." After his statement, his eyes began to rest on the cousins, and for good reason. They had been acting in a suspicious manner, or at least it was shown to be suspicious. With a sigh from Lyra, she decided to speak. And she'd be speaking the truth. No more of the avoidance, and the lies she was told to use by the person these lies were for.

"This was a place where a lot of things happened... Bad things. This is one reason why it's down here. I didn't do anything myself, but I was given my robotic parts in this place," she revealed. "Aaron's been here too to see me when I was still getting checkups. I had to get them a lot more than usual, you know?. But the place is really creepy, so that's kinda why we didn't want to bring anyone else down here," she described, leaving the other five in shock. She wanted to tell the truth, but she still couldn't speak about them... It was pathetic really, but she refused to talk much farther on the subject, considering that this was something shameful in the case of many people. No one seemed to ask for any more than this, considering that it already seemed like a lot to take in, not even considering how it was to speak her mind on the idea.

Without much speech on the matter, they opened up the door, and looked around, seeing only a hallway that could help them move forward. Without hesitation, they went through, and began to find something strange. Written entries on glowing tablets in the rooms, with curiosity, Frisk began to look at them as they passed by. Five entries. They all seemed to be detailing some form of project. Some form of project that revolved around the souls of monsters, and how they might be needed to break something. With prior knowledge, it most likely had to do with the barrier.

After reading through them all on the walk, they came across a hallway with different, branching paths. Looking at the different areas that they could choose from, and then at the keys, she squinted. "Hm... I wonder what all these keyholes are?" she asked. 

"They're the way to get into the power room. We're going to have to find them all if we want to turn the elevator back on," she replied. 

"If that's the case, then why don't we try splitting up? It always works!" Elliot exclaimed. And while that definitely wasn't correct, no one wanted to correct him. And did they have any other plans that they had for right now? Not at all. So, this is all that they could work with.

"Alright, let's make some groups then. Group of three, then two, then another two?" Frisk suggested. And with that idea out in the open, Jacob and Fiona went right over to Frisk, making the girl laugh. "Alright, you guys can pick your pairs I guess, we'll get to searching." And with that, the group of children were off. 

\---

The first thing that they found, nearly right off the bat, was a Save Point in the middle of the floor. Blocking her entrance to the other parts of the room, but it seemed that it was different from before. Fiona looked over at it, in awe. "What is that..?" she wondered. If Fiona could see it, and she hadn't seem anything else of that same vein before, then it couldn't be a star. It had to be something else. Against her better judgement, the girl stared at it for a while. And then, she touched it softly, where it was revealed to not be any kind of star at all. It was some form a monster, and it was angry.

The three of them began to back up, until they were drawn into a battle with it. Fiona hid behind Frisk, trembling with lots of fear. Jacob was side by side with Frisk, as they nodded at each other. They drew their weapons, although the weapons in question were a stick and a journal. They probably wouldn't get too far, but they would still have to try something. 

* Smells like sweet lemons

They all looked at the creature. It looked as though it was in agony. A creature that looked as though it was coming apart at the seams. None of them really knew what to do to it. Fiona seemed to have an idea of what she felt was right, which was to start crying her eyes out. It didn't quite do much. She just kept at it on the floor, with complete insecurity of herself. The way it peered at her made her terrified beyond belief. She wished they had never gone in that elevator, she wished that they never thought about it.

Frisk, even though she felt the same fear, went over to hum a tune. After all, she couldn't help but recognize a part of this monster as others. Others that she'd spoken to before, but seeing the monsters themselves were so disturbing. But she remembered this tune. It was Shyren's, if she was remembering it correctly. Was this part of someone Shyren knew? She didn't want to think about that. But it worked for a moment. It worked for a moment, which gave the two, more stable of the group, a chance to move in on this work. 

After the idea played out, in which they had to protect Fiona the entire time, they figured out something. There was a Shyren, an Aaron (the monster, thankfully), and a Moldybygg. The idea of having seen them before, or at least their families before made her sick to her stomach. There was surely more than Lyra was willing to tell, and with this, she knew that the cyborg was right. She was right in her wish to avoid this place, especially if she already knew about everything. 

At any rate, Frisk started carrying Fiona along. It hurt to see her so shaken up like this, but there wasn't much else she could do. False words of comfort wouldn't help. What would help her was getting out of this hellscape, and that's what they began to do. Though from the crying, Fiona soon fell asleep in Frisk's arms, as the elder girl and Jacob were talking. This changed when they reached a refrigerator room. After all, Fiona noticed the shift in temperature. 

She was roused, and Frisk could feel her shivering hard. Not as badly as she was in Snowdin, but it was obvious that the girl was freezing. Though it would be good to get her out of there, they might find some good food items inside. So, as she got Jacob to search the area for it, she hugged the girl tight. Frisk didn't have as much of a problem with it, but she could feel the cold on her back. And she knew well of how Fiona's tolerance to cold was low. Even with Frisk's effort, it wasn't much of a help, or at least not as much as she wanted it to be, as she child kept whispering "So cold..." under her breath. Frisk spent most of this time trying to tell her that they would be out of this area in a moment. But that was the only thing she kept muttering. At least, until they heard the sound of a crash where Jacob probably was.

Picking up the girl again and rushing over, they saw Jacob, along with another monster. Another pained monster that didn't seem well. Fiona just seemed colder in the presence of it, and even Frisk could feel a shiver come up her back. Somehow, it got even worse as they were pulled into battle. Jacob seemed to be toughing it out, as they needed to figure out, once again, what to do.

* It's so cold...

Remembering how this monster had a look reminiscent of Snowdrake, Frisk had another idea. She decided to make a joke. It was a fine joke, as well, causing the woman to laugh. Her and Jacob kept on trying to do that, but it seemed to lose effect. They were trying their best, but suddenly...

Fiona grasped for the ground, still looking to be cold, and yet still wanting to try for this. She had an idea for that, walking over to the woman, and giving her a hug. This way, she felt safe. It was strange, neither of the other two had really felt like it was normal for the girl. And yet, it made the biggest impact. "Thank... youuuu..." she sighed, before retreating again, leaving the children dumbstruck. The room became warm again, giving Fiona more of a chance to walk.

"What... What was that?" Frisk asked.

"I could feel her..." Fiona replied. "I could feel her wanting me. She didn't like the fridge. She wanted to go out, and feel warm again. I don't know how I know I just... Do... I heard it, I felt it-"

Before they could ask for more of a response, there were two, subsequent screams that the group heard. They didn't want to separate, since that could hurt them more. But now, the group had to pick which way to go. Who they wanted to find, and where the best course of action would be.


	40. Memoryhead

The three kids ran around through the lab, after figuring to grab the Blue Key, until they found one of the sources of the yelling. A couple of strange, gelatinous, and malformed creatures were sitting there. From what Frisk could see of it as well, Aaron and Elliot were in that mix, as if they were being swallowed or ingested by these things. A horrifying sight to behold, really. While they didn't look to be hurt, obviously that was something to scream about. So the trio knew they had to do something about this mess, so Frisk, being the leader, but determined idiot she was, sprang into action. 

"Hey! Uglies! Look over here!" she exclaimed, restoring my faith that this girl doesn't have an ounce of common sense to her name. And yet, she still accomplished what she'd meant to. The creatures looked over, with faces distorted and difficult to look at, as they began sloshing, the unusual arm and leg that the group recognized to be Aaron's or Elliot's popping through the goop at times. Fiona cringed into Frisk's shirt as the battle commenced. 

First, Frisk tried to say something to the lot of them, as there were not only two, but three in total. And yet, all that could be heard was radio static. She didn't believe that she'd get through to them, but that was when Jacob thought up a plan. He grabbed his phone, and started to mess with the settings on it. Frisk couldn't help but be confused, considering that she wasn't as tech savvy as she may appear. Hell, it was funny that even Jacob had more knowledge on the subject than she did. And apparently, he'd been down here for much longer than she had. So, she watched him work with silence, until voices began being picked up on the radio function. Now, that was actually something astounding to watch. Though, only one haunting message appeared through the receiver. 

"Come join the fun" 

And the message continue to repeat through the receiver's lines. Over and over again, with all three entities overlapping each other in speech. 

And yet, realizing what the message meant, Frisk knew that she wouldn't want anything to do with their little get together. Because getting together with that motley crew could end in being absorbed in the same way Aaron and Elliot were being right now. These kids understood what was going on here. They were a little bit smarter. Only a little bit though, because I could definitely see Frisk having said yes if their friends weren't being absorbed. And so, the Memoryheads began murmuring to themselves, before they looked over and gave up.

"A sHaMe then, why bother?"

With that, they dispersed away from the lab, the two boys were left behind in their train, coughing and hacking up some goo that Frisk didn't want to touch. She knew unmistakably that it came from the Memoryheads, so she just hoped it wouldn't have lasting effects, whether it be physical or emotional. I hope so too, for the sake of things moving along like they should. Frisk, thankfully enough, rushed over to make sure that the two were alright, seeing as they couldn't be too great after nearly becoming part of a miserable mishmash of a creature. She had to ask though, just to assure herself of it.

"Are you guys okay? What happened to you back there? What were those things?" she asked in rapid succession, only to be met with a heavy groan from one of them. She couldn't quite tell who though.

"I don't wanna talk right now," Aaron mentioned. "That was the worst experience of my life..." Considering how he'd recently been confronted with death by his worst fear, that definitely told the group a lot of their misfortune.

Elliot though, after he was all done with hacking his lungs out of his chest, stood up and started stretching out, mostly likely to get the creaks out of his bones. "It was so disgusting!" Elliot whined. "Plus I saw a lotta stuff that I didn't want to think about." His voice grew somewhat grim when he mentioned that part. Frisk didn't even think of prying for details at that point, but it left her curious as to what had happened inside the Memoryhead's clutches. 

Frisk though, also knew a sure way to get the group moving. Since Aiden was already up and moving, Aaron was easy to make move. Especially considering that she wouldn't have to lie in order to make it work. "But Aaron, we have to go get Lyra! This isn't the only place I heard screaming from, and Lyra and Claire are the only group we don't know the whereabouts of," she explained, actually seeming concerned. Well, she was, but she also knew that they'd have to move in order to go anywhere through here. Aaron, with that news, found his eyes shooting wide open, and springing up.

"Well, why didn't ya say that earlier! We gotta go if we wanna help 'em!" he exclaimed. And with that, the group began moving to their next location. 

Once they arrived, things seemed a lot calmer than Frisk would've imagined. Instead of seeing something monstrous, she saw the two girls catching their breath. They had definitely fought something, but it was long gone by now. Thank goodness, she was glad to see that. But even still, she knew that there were multiple questions to ask at the moment. Mostly going to Lyra. "Are y'all okay?!" Aaron asked, before hugging his younger cousin tightly.

Lyra giggled and nodded. "Yeah... Who knew a dog looking monster would like lasers as much as a cat?" she asked, taking the situation much lighter than would be expected. Especially since she seemed so grim about the place earlier. Though Claire beat her to the punch on the questions.

"Now that we're all back together, can you tell me what the BLOODY HELL is going on with this place?" the sixteen year old exclaimed. "What are those things, and how do you know so much about it?" All eyes fell to Lyra, who shifted uncomfortably under the pressure. 

"I can tell y'all, I knew to-" Aaron started.

"No, it's fine. You've seen them, but you don't know as much about them as I do. I can tell the full story a bit better, so is that alright?" Lyra replied, Aaron staying without objection. "Good... Alright, so let me start by saying, these creatures were down here when I first arrived in the underground. They're a highly kept secret, and the only reason I know, is because I was fixed up into this body while I was here. Aaron knows because I made sure that he came down here while I was still being repaired.

"These come from Alphys' experiments on monster souls, to make the souls of monsters who have fallen down into a possible replacement for a determination soul. After all, determination souled humans are rare as they come. We're lucky that you're even here right now, Frisk. But even so, the determination used was human determination, from the physical soul of the last determined human to fall, named Chara. The king didn't want her soul to be used on the barrier itself, insisting she was better than that, so this was what it came to.

"But then, the experiments went differently than planned. The monsters were waking up instead of dusting as they usually did in death. They were walking around as if everything was normal! But it wasn't... Instead, after a few days, the monsters began fusing, and melting together until nothing was left. Making the creatures we know now as Amalgamates. Alphys, who was afraid of what everyone would think if she released them like that, instead decided to keep them down here, so no one would ever have to know."

Finally, she was finished explaining, leaving everyone in a horrified shock. So Frisk's conclusions were right. They were like fused versions of monsters she'd met before, because that's what they really were. "Oh... Oh my god-" Jacob stated, breaking a minute long silence that had been conjured. 

"So that's why you didn't want to go in there," Claire added, looking nearly apologetic for suggesting that they go inside in the first place. "I'm sorry for making you see everything again," she said, though Lyra just shook her head. 

"It's alright, really! I just didn't want everyone to see them... It's a miserable sight, you know. And Alphys doesn't like the idea of others knowing about this place. The only reason it was open was because she was finally opening up, it looked like," Lyra insisted.

"Speaking of Alphys, where do you think she is?" Elliot asked, before everyone realized it.

"I don't know, but maybe she already left?" Lyra suggested with hope. Anyway, do we all have the keys?" Sure enough, with a few members digging things out of their pockets, Aaron grabbing the red key, that Frisk didn't even want to know the origin of, Frisk grabbing the blue key, and Claire and Lyra each taking out one of the remaining two. "That's all, it looks like! Let's get back to the power room then!"

From there, the group continued moving, with Lyra leading the way back, since she seemed to know it the best. Even still, Frisk noticed a lone room she hadn't seen before, but decided to back off when she saw Lyra moving faster away from the door frame. After a good while, they finally reached the place they started from, the power room's door. With each kid who had one on hand putting a key into the door, it slid open slowly, but surely enough. They walked inside, seeing nothing there, but a box that most of them would assume to be a fuse box or something. Either way, there was a power switch on it, that was flipped to off. That made sense to pull, and so Frisk was the one to pull it.

They were all relieved when they noticed more light beginning to come on, thankfully leaving them with better sight prospects. But with that in mind, instead of leaving on a positive note as they planned, the group was stopped. By a group of Amalgamates, of all types creeping in closer to them. It was terrifying to see them all there. None of them were types they'd seen before after all. So their first idea was to panic at the sight. Even Lyra, who was more accustomed to this place, looked nervous about seeing them all at once. Just as they were about to close in though...

"Hey, stop that!" It was Alphys, running in to save the day. "I have the food for you all, so get away from those kids!" she exclaimed, throwing the whole bag outside the door, leading the entire group of Amalgamates out of the power room. "I'm really, REALLY sorry, everyone. They get really sassy when they're hungry, and I can smell some chisps."

Everyone seemed confused at the chisps remark, except for Elliot, who distantly looked on with a whistle. Obviously, why am I not surprised that he bought the food here. No one mentioned it though, only gave him a heavy and dirty look on the subject. They could've died because of that mistake, after all!

"Anyway!" Alphys continued, hoping to take the conversation somewhere else. "I've been trying to get the power on for a while, but I'm glad you got in here to do it. This was probably an inconvenience for you all, but I'm glad you're here... I wasn't sure if I was going to come back up."

"But Alphys, they wouldn't hurt you! You take care of them, after all," Lyra interjected.

"I know, I know. That's not what I meant. I just thought I would be too frightened to tell the truth about everything. That I'd... chicken out like I always do... But, should I explain everything, or did you already tell them, Lyra."

"I told them... I'm sorry I did, they were just asking and stuff, because everyone had different kind of run ins. Aaron and Elliot almost got sucked into the Memoryheads too..." 

"Oh, god- I'm so sorry... I don't know enough about them to tell you anything, but still... I'm so sorry I've been cowardly. I put you all in danger! But now, I'm not going to do that anymore. I'm going to face up to everything I've done, and tell their families. Send them back..."

"Really? I'm so glad... I'm gonna help you do it too, so you aren't alone once you try!"

"I'm glad... I know it's going to be hard for me, what with my track record, but still. I'll do my best for you all, I promise. But I'll wait for the rest of you to come back. You have to take Frisk back to Asgore first, so I'll be waiting for you. Don't let me back out of this though!"

"We won't! I'll be back as soon as I can!"

"Me too," Aaron added, for a few reasons, but the biggest of them being that he truly wished to help. With the hope of the world standing by them, everyone realized that things were looking up for the people in the underground, for one reason or another. But they also knew something else. Once they made it to Asgore's castle, there would be newer challenges for Frisk to face. Challenges that Frisk would have to face alone. While of course, she could walk with everyone to get there, she knew well that they wouldn't be fighting with her. While they were her friends, they were loyal to their king as well. But Frisk understood that she wasn't going to walk out of this easily. She needed to have courage, and the drive to get there. 

And from here on out, she understood more than before. She'd grown more from the person she was when she entered the area. And from that growth, she would get out of there. And she would do it not only for her, but for Fiona, the girl who she'd promised she'd leave with as well. She was more prepared for this than she ever thought she would be.

Or at least, that's how she believed it.

* CORE ARC: END


	41. The King's Fighting Servant

Although taking the elevators through Hotland and the Core were simple, as they were all fully operational again, things stayed quiet, as many things needed to be processed at the moment. After all, everything they'd learned, and witnessed inside the laboratory leaps and bounds beyond what children were expected to comprehend. Yet, the quietest of them, surprisingly, was Aaron. Although, knowing he'd been in the labs before, Frisk supposed that something else tugged at his mind instead. No one seemed to question him though. Some even seemed to glance at him a few times, knowing what was soon to occur. Frisk was left in the dark though, unquestioning and unsure of everyone's actions. 

Yet, she wasn't aware of the true meaning of these actions until the group reached the outside of the castle, as walking that way was long and arduous. Suddenly though, Aaron stopped in his tracks, looking at Frisk with glaring eyes. A look the girl hadn't seen from him before. After all, he was usually the goofy and quirky addition to the group. Yet, this wasn't the case momentarily, considering that he had something to say. Something that Frisk may not enjoy hearing. 

"Hey... Guess'n I've got somethin' to admit to ya..." he began, instead of continuing his serious demeanor and facade, he stayed silent and solemn. Frisk didn't like the path the conversation was heading, yet she knew there wasn't much she could do to stop it. Instead, she silently permitted him to continue. "The king's ordered me, once ya made it here, to get rid of ya. Or, at least try my best to do that," he admitted. "Now, I really don't wanna do that! You're a great friend, and someone who's been great to not just me, but Lyra too! But, to keep with my duties, we gotta at least make it look like I did somethin', so..." Quickly, the teen drew his gun, pointing it at Frisk as he signaled the others to step back, which they obliged to without question. After all, this was Aaron's and Frisk's fight to settle. They trusted both parties, after all. They didn't assume anyone would die, especially with Aaron's words.

Similarly, Frisk put her trust in him as well. His words seemed genuine, especially since he had nothing to lie about. The others knew him as well, knew what he did. If they didn't object to his claims, or demands, Frisk could understand what he was planning. So, without much preventing her from battle, she drew her stick, as if it were a sword, and pointed it the same way the teen held his gun. 

As usual, everything began shifting as the battle commenced. The voices of others fell away into nothing as everything set its course for beginning, and possibly even ending. 

* Aaron challenges you

For the most part, Frisk couldn't figure out what to say to him. She usually made her way out of battles by speaking with others, but this was different. This battle was an agreement. Something that one of them had to win, but not end in death. No one planned to end the ordeal that way, after all. What would the others say? Instead, she continued to refuse hitting him. Mostly offering to end the fights early, as she wished to do.

Though, that wasn't something he wished for. He wanted a challenge, it seemed. Something that would test his battle capabilities better than before. Humans were rare, after all, but very strong. Aaron didn't know how Frisk would fare, but the idea was intriguing to him. That was his reason for not ending things early. Instead, knowing that he could lighten his magic, so he wouldn't hurt Frisk beyond repair, he shot easy to memorize bullet patterns out of his gun. Though the bullets didn't come out normally. They were magic, after all. I mean, regular bullets that he was used to were hard to come by in the Underground, since everyone relied on the magic they were gifted with. Through that logic and practice, Aaron learned the technique to summon magic as well. 

Surprised? Well, you shouldn't be. While magic is rare in humans, those who have the potential for it, such as myself, Frisk, or Aaron can learn it best Underground, where magical energy is surplussed and beneficial to other humans. 

At any rate, while Frisk hadn't gotten too hurt, aside from being nicked with a few magical bullets, leaving her a newfound shock to her arms, she realized as well that just trying to end it with words wasn't working. He wanted a fight. He wanted a little bit of pushback, maybe? This seemed to give Frisk an idea. Something I find to be idiotic, but and idea nonetheless. 

Frisk took out her stick, carefully aimed, and...

Tapped Aaron lightly on the head with it. 

Suddenly, with that move, the theatrics were on, thankfully in Frisk's favor.

"Oooooh, nooooooo- I've been hit! Ow...-!" he exclaimed, with Frisk unable to help herself from giggling. As she realized this made sense, and began working as she hoped it should, her turns soon consisted solely of her doing this, always earning herself some kind of dramatic response. At least, until the point where Aaron grew tired for other reasons than his flopping on the floor like a buffoon. Instead, it was due to the fact his energy was running dry because of extensive magic usage. With the boy left to breathe hard and heavy, both sides realized that they shouldn't continue on like this. Especially since both sides had the illusion of putting through a good fight. Hopefully no one had watched this go down besides the other children, since they would be the only ones to see and tell the difference. That wasn't on anyone's mind though, as the end began to come.

"Hey..." Aaron began, huffing and wheezing. Frisk could tell he'd grown tired, and not from her pretend hitting. Instead, she realized that he really was exhausted, and that they should stop to rest for a good moment. "Maybe we should end this match here... Even though I wasn't really givin' it my all, I still am beat from all that weak magic I let out at once. So can we just get movin', since we both look beat enough?" 

"Yeah, let's stop for now, then," Frisk agreed, letting everything turn back to normal around them, as everyone realized the fight was over. Lyra was the first of the group to make her way over, seeming quite a bit jumpy and unnerved because of the entire ordeal. Both of them were people she cared for, and worried about immensely. She had every right to get nervous over the lot of them. 

"What did you guys do, why'd you make him so tired?!" Lyra demanded, looking right over at Frisk, with her cheeks all puffy and unhappy looking. The two participants merely laughed over the idea of concern.

"Nothin' really, I just used a buncha weak bullets while this youngin' bapped me on the head with a stick," he explained, happily laughing as relief flooded over the cyborg. 

"Ooooohkay," she replied, taking their words as truth. "Anyway, does that mean you're done? Cause we really should get going if you are. We gotta get to Asgore, so we can get the fight going, and see what happens."

Everyone seemed to be alright with the idea, especially the two participants of the fight. While Frisk needed to walk off a few bruises, she didn't realize that they wouldn't see the king right away. Or, at least until Aaron spoke up one more time.

"Well, if that's the case, then I better show ya around New Home too. It's customary for people who make it this far to go through and see the place. I was allowed to see it my first time here. I also live in this part particularly, so I know most of everything about everything. Plus, the view's amazing, so I don't think any of y'all would really wanna pass this up."

"I mean, I've never seen it before... Is it pretty?" Fiona asked, looking up at Aaron cautiously, yet with curiosity. 

"Well, it depends on your tastes, but I love the place. And I hope y'all do too, but I'll leave that up to everyone as we go inside. Welcome, one and all, to New Home." With that last statement, Aaron disappeared into the door to the place. Looking over each other with confusion first, the other travelers followed him inside.


	42. The Royal Story

When the children first arrived inside New Home, Fiona and Frisk could recognize the layout immediately. This was Toriel's home. At least, it looked as such. Considering this, Frisk realized that maybe she should point it out. Maybe there was reasoning. Something everyone could understand. So, she decided to go outside the gate and mention things. "This place... It reminds me of the Ruins. The house of the person that lived there. Miss Toriel, if that name rings a bell," she said. 

Once the name was spoken, Aaron's eyes went big as dinner plates. "The former queen? She's still livin' in the Ruins?" he asked, which made everyone else shocked, especially Frisk and Fiona. 

"Mama was a queen?" Fiona asked, her face looking both surprised and excited. Maybe because this made her become a technical princess? I don't blame her, considering her young age. While things were still tense because of the news, Aaron realized that an explanation was in order regardless.

"If Queen Toriel was your Mama, then yeah!" he exclaimed. "Though she resigned the throne an age ago. I know the story behind it too, if any of y'all want to know."

Everyone seemed willing to hear, though these children don't have all of the story. The real story is something known firsthand. Luckily, I experienced everything first hand. As the first princess of the Underground royal family, I would be better suited to relay the story, for everyone's sake. 

So, as these children began listening around, as they awaited heading to the throne room, I have a story for everyone. The true story.

\---

I can't remember how many years it's been since this story unfolded, though it was the turn of the 20th century before my death. I fell into the Underground around then, and met the Royal family. King Asgore, Queen Toriel, and Prince Asriel. When I fell Underground, they treated me as if I were family. One of their own. Asriel especially. He treated me as I was his sister, without any different treatment. Because while the adults did care for me, they treated me differently than Asriel. They treated me as though they had to jump around. Through hoops. I understood it of course. I was thirteen, I understood a lot more than I was ever given credit.

Anyway, time passed while I was down there. Asriel and I became inseparable. Six whole months passed, and I became the savior of the Underground. Although this wasn't the role I wished for, I continued to live around it. They deserved someone who they could look to. And yet, I was unable to mentally continue staying stagnant this way. I believed I should do something else. So that was where my planning began. Planning for saving the Underground once and for all. It took me a while. Considering the way the Underground's barrier was structure, I believed there was only one way to solve things. I had to die so everyone could be free.

So, the only one I mentioned things to was Asriel. After a mistake we'd made prior with poisonous buttercups, my ideas were completely set. The plan came in motion quickly. The ordeal hurt like hell, I have to admit, but I made things through. Everything ended soon enough, and Asriel completed his share, by absorbing my soul and moving forward. 

Now, I don't know how the plans of other timelines were carried out, but ours was a complete failure for different reasons than usual. Instead of attempting to kill, we did attempt to speak with them, while both of us understood what we desired. We desired other humans to follow us into the Underground, because we didn't need anyone to die for the barrier to be broken. But while my brother believed they would instantly follow behind, I knew they may be difficult. I believed that we would need to use force for the ritual. Though I didn't expect they would all react so harshly, and with rage. They said they would take revenge for my departed soul, but they were full of shit. No one had ever cared for me. They didn't know me. They would never know me. They would never care for me as the monsters did. 

Though anyways, they began stoning us. Hurting us everywhere. While I wanted to hurt them, Asriel believed there was still good left within them. Those thoughts became our downfall, considering as we tried to get through to the people, someone shot us with a rifle. Fatally, of course, but nothing to instantly kill. Instead, we were forced to go back Underground, in pain. So that our parents wouldn't look for us, about to meet the same fate. Though watching the look on their faces when we came down before dying was terrifying. I hated to see it. I hated every part of it. My hate for humanity grew more than it ever had before. And yet, there wasn't much I could do. Before long, the two of us were dead, and I came to my place in the void. Without anyone for company, beside the occasional void beast, or Gaster.

Yet, I was able to see the outside from the void. I watched everything happen. Though things were fine sometimes, I was forced to watch my parents divorce because of disagreements based on my brother and I's death. This made me realize that my plan was flawed. Not only that, I caused more pain than I ever imagined I would. Though, I shouldn't have been surprised. I was a human, this was completely in my nature. After that scene, the only other things that interested me were the experiments in the true lab, and the falling of the other humans. I never liked them, of course, since they were humans. 

This is the complete story of what I know. Although a story could also be told by others, through experiences they didn't witness, I know it the best. As an omnipresent spirit, I know more than anyone else would. I've seen everything known here. And yet, you already understand that story, don't you?

\---

After the story was told, at least in Aaron's perspective, Fiona looked nearly ready to cry because of this. So did a few others, but I felt as though Fiona was the most telling. After all, she lived with my mother. She should've known better than anyone, though possibly things could've been different. Toriel never wanted to remember what happened. She didn't love the idea of anything that caused people pain, though forgetting everything wasn't great either. 

"Goodness, y'all-" Aaron wheezed, realizing everyone's reactions to it. "I didn't think y'all would think so much of the story."

"Well, this was new to everyone and it was... Kind of sad, to be honest," Claire mentioned, deciding to keep it short, while wiping possible tears out of her eyes. "At any rate, we should be moving along."

"That's a good idea, especially since I dunno how long it'll take to make things over to the throne room by foot," Aaron added. As everyone began preparing themselves to move, Fiona tugged on Frisk's sleeve again, frowning. 

"Yeah, Fiona? What's going on?" the girl asked. 

"Well... I was thinkin' you should have this if you need it," Fiona mentioned. "In case you have to do something, this helps I think," she mumbled. Although Frisk didn't plan to harm anyone badly, Frisk realized that Fiona had a point. After all, this fight, unlike many others, could prove to be difficult to win without violence. The girl believed she would need this. 

"Thank you... I'll take care of it until we see each other again." 

Fiona nodded once that was stated, and while the little girl was satisfied, she began joining with the group, as Frisk soon did the same. 

The group walked in silence. Entirely silent. Not a murmur came from the group as they went through the creepy hallways, through and through, until they finally found something outside monochrome. Though, something they weren't expecting, was to see Sans at the end of the hallway. They hadn't seen the man in such a long time. So this shocked them all. He didn't quite greet them normally either. 

"So, you kids finally made it. The end of everyone's journey is at hand," Sans began. "In a few moments, the determined human will meet the king. And together, the two of you will determine the fate of this world. Though, that's then. This is now. And now, you will be judged. You will be judged for every step you take, every action you committed. Every bit of EXP you may have earned." Frisk seemed confused once EXP was mentioned, but a few seemed concerned about the idea. Especially the older three of the group. Sans, though, noticed the girl's concern, and decided to answer accordingly. 

"What's EXP, you may be wondering? It's an acronym. For execution points. A way of quantifying the pain you've inflicted on others. When you kill someone, or something, your EXP increases. When your EXP increases enough, your LOVE will increase. What is LOVE, you ask? Another acronym, meaning level of violence. How we measure someone's capacity to hurt. The more you hurt, the easier it is to distance yourself. The more you distance yourself, the less it will hurt. The more easily you can bring yourself to hurt others.

"But you, Frisk, you never gained any LOVE. Among humans, that is a difficult feat to have achieved. Others in this room can understand that completely. While that doesn't make you innocent, like others in this room might be, you have a certain kindness to you. That, I believe I can tell for two of you. Whatever people threw at you down here, you continued to strive for goodness. For doing the right thing. You never hurt a soul. Even when you ran, you continued with your kind mission. Instead of gaining LOVE, you gain love. That probably doesn't make sense, but that isn't any of my business. But now, you're about to face the greatest challenge you've ever faced, and ever will face. If you continue as you have before, you will die. Your soul will be used to break the barrier, and monsters will finally be free. But if you kill him, and go home, you will feel the stain, and the pain on your soul forever. 

"So, what will you do? I have no clue, I never thought anyone would get this far. Nobody has, not really. But knowing you, you won't give up. Somehow, you'll find a way to make everyone happy. Because you're determined. As long as you follow your beliefs, you'll make the correct decision yourself. But know this. Don't think you have to do this alone. You have so many friends behind you. Those with you now, and those that aren't around at the moment. We believe in you, but we're also counting on you. Good luck, kid." With that, Sans walked away from the door to the throne room. Everyone was left to their own devices, though Aaron left the room, into Asgore's room. With that, they talked among themselves. 

Things were talkative, while they tried to understand what might, and could possibly happen around there. Frisk though, she stayed silent, in realization that the fate of everyone laid squarely on her shoulders. It was a terrifying weight to bear, but she realized she really wasn't alone. Especially with all these friends with her. 

After a good while, Aaron returned, his eyes solemn. "The king requests for Frisk and Fiona to go inside themselves. I am allowed to accompany, but everyone else must stay here."

Frisk's heart beat faster than a speeding bullet. She realized a few things at this very moment. She may not see the others again, so she knew what to do. "One moment..." she said, before walking over to Jacob. She sucked in a breath, and did what she was interrupted from doing. She completely melted into a kiss with the preteen, to which he seemed surprised. He didn't say a word, he barely moved because of this. Left in a daze, Frisk pulled off, and grabbed Fiona's hand. No one else seemed reactive to this, though they would soon. Probably, they would say words soon. But that would be after they were inside. That didn't matter much. Frisk just wanted to make her last chance to move count. 

With that out of the way, three children stood in front of the throne. Fiona hid behind Frisk, afraid of the king's towering figure. She had every right to feel this way, as well. This was the final part of their journey. Aaron, though, just seemed tired, and quiet. Sad and quiet for everyone involved. He didn't believe these kids deserved to live through anything. And yet, this was his duty, as the royal adviser, and personal quard to the king. He would fulfill it, without fail. Because he didn't wish to betray his king. Though, he did believe in Frisk, so he knew that this would help their situation. He could do this without a guilty conscience. 

"I brought them in D... I mean, King Asgore," he replied.

"You don't have to be so formal, my child. Though howdy, you all," Asgore added, turning around to face everyone. While Fiona flinched for a moment. "There is no reason to be afraid of me. I realize things aren't ideal for our meeting, but I suppose it had to be done."

"First, do any of you children want some tea?"


	43. Tea Time Talks

The effort required to get Fiona to sit down was more than reasonable, especially since Frisk did all the work required. Aaron and the king had merely sat down, watching everything unfold. Now, thankfully the girl wasn't attempting to destroy anything through her movements, she merely had no desire to sit around with the man who may kill her best friend. Obviously, there are many people who'd do the same. Of course, these actions still caused an annoying scene, so she needed to be stopped somehow. That's why Frisk was here in the first place. Well, that purpose, and the fact that she was meant to battle the king, as everyone insisted. Though, she understood she should find another way out than the death of another, obviously. The question brought forth now was how.

No one else seemed to mention anything, most likely because that stroke of conversation was too heavy for a tea party. Frisk was glad such things didn't show up, considering she wanted her morale to stay fresh in case things turned gritty during their battle. Though, this mood didn't stay around forever. Instead, once the girls seemed to be done with everything necessary, and while Fiona seemed rather antsy for what came next, the king finally stood, giving the others room for doing the same. The expression left on his face seemed solemn as his eyes laid on Frisk for a moment, though he soon went to Fiona, looking more comforted by her presence. 

"Small one..." he began, grabbing Fiona's attention quickly. When she was addressed, she grew stiff and afraid. Thankfully, he noticed, and made his demeanor more comforting and appealing for her. "I'm not going to hurt you, as I stated before. This time, I was just wondering what your plans were for after this journey."

Fiona was surprised at the question, yet she did know what she was going to answer with. After all, she'd known the answer for a long time. Well, not exactly long, but you understand what I mean already. "Umm... I wanted to leave Underground, and see the world. I never really got to before I fell," she explained. "And I wanna do it with Frisk, cause she promised me she'd take me!"

The king didn't seem surprised by that answer, only slightly amused, chuckling lightly at the second part without malice. "That's a wonderful dream you have, child. I wish I could make that come true, but sadly..." His expression changed drastically, morphing from something kind and jovial, to something more serious and weary. "I don't believe that's possible for me-"

Though Fiona couldn't quite understand, Frisk knew the meaning instantly. It was somewhat comforting to hear this, too. He didn't wish to spill any more blood than necessary. Maybe she could convince him that she was an unnecessary kill as well? She didn't rely on this, though she hoped and prayed for this to be true. She soon understood that her time of peace was running short. That her time in quiet and solemn silence would end. Then, she would be forced into a frightful position. Would she have to give up her life for this cause? Or would this be solved the way she planned things to be? 

The metaphorical death bells rang, though, once Asgore turned to Aaron for the final time. "Aaron, please take young Fiona there outside again. It's time..." The boy's only response was a nod as he began the attempt to usher the seven year old outside the room. Though she seemed hesitant, there wasn't a lot that could be done to fight back. She was much smaller than him by a long measure. She just looked back at Frisk, pleading for something Frisk couldn't put into words. 

Though Frisk, instead of reacting horribly to this, looked straight toward Asgore, as if she were looking death straight into the eye. She was prepared, at least emotionally, for what was in store. So now, all she planned to do was go straight for the end. Especially since everyone else was already gone. This was between her and the king. She would respect that for all the worth it held. 

"Are you ready then, child?" he asked, to which Frisk only nodded. She didn't resort to running. To doing anything stupid. This would be a respectful fight, she understood. Instead of any sort of banter, the two of them silently went deeper through the throne room. Instead of having any form of talk, they knew words wouldn't be helpful. Not here, and not anymore. At least, not until the fighting truly began in Frisk's eyes. 

After a while of walking through, the two of them reached something that shimmered with white light. Frisk could swear she saw something at the end of that tunnel, but she couldn't put her finger on it. Now, was the first time she'd spoken in a while. "What... What is that?" she asked, though still attempting to make something out through the strange light. 

"That, child, is the barrier," he began to explain, forcing Frisk to listen once again. "This is what keeps us all trapped underground... If... By any chance, you may have unfinished business, please do what you must-" Though instead of moving away, Frisk took a step closer, nodding with certainty. There wasn't much she had left to do. Everything that had been done and said was everything she needed. Even if she truly died, she would be okay with continuing from here. He seemed almost unhappy they had to start right away, and yet, he responded anyway. "I see... This is it, then... It's time."

As a lone empty jar came outside from the floor, the girl felt everything change, as it always seemed to. Everything she experienced. Everything she knew would be put to the test this final moment. This final battle. And although she could feel her heart beat faster than ever before, she was ready to continue. Ready to face the final obstacle standing between herself and exiting the underground. And she could feel a strange feeling well and grow inside her heart. Though this feeling was something she understood completely.

* A strange light fills the room

* Twilight is shining through the barrier

* You are filled with DETERMINATION

After a while, the king finally began speaking once again. "Human... It was nice to meet you... Goodbye..." His voice made her somewhat sad, and yet... She understood that this was for the best.

Suddenly, he whipped a trident outside of his cape. Before it could go where it intended...

A fireball appeared, somehow strong enough to hurl Asgore away from everything. 

"What a miserable creature, torturing such a poor and innocent youth..."


	44. Don't Give Up On Us

Frisk couldn't believe her eyes when she witnessed Toriel blasting Asgore away without caution nor warning. Though the sight was somewhat funny to watch, she couldn't help but be confused. Thankfully enough, though, she realized this would cease, or at least postpone her battling with the king. She was extremely relieved on that front too, considering her absent will to fight, especially considering she drew a blank on anything she could use to diffuse this situation. This was that saving grace she hadn't asked for, but absolutely needed through life. Though, Toriel hadn't stopped there, even though her glares toward Asgore failed to cease, though it switched between caring smiles toward the determined girl, and that glare I'd already mentioned. 

"Don't be afraid, dear child. You already know me. Although I believed you and Fiona could make this journey alone firsthand, suddenly, I realized that you children stayed on my mind through everything. Your journey must've been so treacherous... and you were nearly forced to make a burdensome choice that would not only affect you, but everyone else around you. Something that may have pressured you into taking the life of another. I couldn't let this happen, since I attempted to prevent the same thing from happening by keeping you inside... So instead of fighting, we should suspend this battle. As terrible as that man is, everyone deserve some mercy. By the way, though, where is Fiona?"

Considering the question, Fiona thought about that similarly. After all, someone must have noticed the large woman bursting through the throne room's doors. Thankfully, that answer didn't take long to appear, as Aaron, along with the small Fiona on his back, rushed through the pathway, with the older boy panting and wheezing. 

"J...Jeez, Fiona- Didja really hafta ride on my back the whole way there?" he asked, as the girl jumped off, looking much smugger than usual. 

"Yup, definitely!"

"Well, why's that?"

"Because, silly! I am small."

"Y'know what, I guess that's understandable."

Though, once Fiona noticed who was in the room, she went up and hugged her, grinning happily. "Mama! I can't believe you're here!" 

"Yes, I'm here darling... Everything's alright-" Toriel cooed.

"This family moment's precious and all, but ya really ain't supposed to be here-" Aaron attempted to direct everyone outside, before something else stopped him.

"Tori... You truly came back..?" the king asked, sounding rather weak considering his encounter with the queen. That sentence definitely knocked the sense into Aaron, though.

"Tori... Toriel?!" he exclaimed, before quickly stumbling to one knee. "Deepest apologies, your highness-"

"Don't worry, child, everything is alright... You couldn't have known," the woman replied, before snapping right back toward Asgore. "But you... don't you "Tori" me, you pathetic whelp. You could've taken one of the children with you, and gotten the determination soul through those means, instead of waiting all that time if you truly cared about freeing everyone. But instead you kept five children down here for heavens knows how long, waiting for some hope that another would conveniently fall that held a similar trait?"

"I suppose when you put things that way, I really am despicable..." the king sighed. "Though, maybe after everything, we could still be friends?"

Toriel shook her head, sighing as she put a paw to her face. "NO Asgore, we aren't doing that," she affirmed, leaving the king in shock before he nearly burst into tears, prompting Aaron to reassure him that everything would be fine, although that wasn't farther from the truth. Especially with everything, and everyone, that was suddenly coming their way. Multiple people, including Undyne, Alphys, Papyrus, Sans, and the other four remaining kids. Mostly, they were attempting to stop any fighting that could possibly be going on. But thankfully, there wasn't much left to stop by now, and everyone was basically mingling. Besides Asgore, who was being comforted by his apprentice, and Undyne. 

Lots of extreme actions took place, including some horrific pun making from Toriel, a near kiss, and some antics that made everything light and easy. Finally, everything seemed to show a semblance of peace. Although they'd still be trapped here, despite their past drive. Either way, they realized this wouldn't be such an awful thing. Staying Underground could even be more beautiful than anyone previously imagined, while everyone was together. 

"Well, I suppose you'll be sticking around then, until we can finally break our barrier through peaceful measures. Though, seeing everything you've done here, including every friend you've made, I suppose that won't be hard for you?" Toriel stated.

Frisk nodded, honestly glad to see everything unfold this way. In ways that everyone could win with. Where everyone could be happy, at least for now. "Yeah... I'll like it here, with everyone else!" the human exclaimed. 

Though, while everyone seemed excited, Alphys had some concern on her mind, that Lyra was soon to point out. "Uhm... Is something wrong?" the cyborg asked. 

"Everything's fine, I guess... But- Papyrus. You called everyone here but... Since Undyne and I got here before you- How did you know where to go?"

"OH, THAT'S EASY! A TINY FLOWER TOLD ME WHERE TO GO?"

"Excuse me, a what?"

Suddenly, every peaceful venture fell to pieces, as two large vines appeared out of nowhere, one grabbing every monster, and the other grabbing each human aside from Frisk. Everyone was left confused and afraid, especially Frisk. But the confusion died once the culprit was finally revealed. 

Flowey.

Everyone struggled against their imprisonment, seeming angered. Though a few seemed afraid as well. The flower, though? He was enjoying every moment of this small torture session. But he did find himself quickly accomplishing business. To Frisk's horror, the vine ensnaring the humans grew tighter than humanly imaginable. This squeeze drew their souls outside, leaving the bodies in tact, to where their souls would be as well. One by one, every one of them fell limp inside the vines. They all seemed to be breathing, and yet they were incapacitated right now, and maybe indefinitely. 

"Hey, everyone! Did you miss me?" he greeted, staring at the shaking and terrified Frisk. "Probably not, but that isn't important right now. What's important now, is how idiotic everyone is! No one even realized I must have had a part in this. Aren't some of you supposed to be smart? Anyway, now that everyone's here, I'll be taking not only these six, but everyone else's too! After all, the more power I use, the more hopeless you must become." Simultaneously, the souls had suddenly gone missing. Frisk realized quickly that they must be inside Flowey now. The idea itself was terrifying to her. Imagining the pain all of them must feel... She didn't want to imagine this, but she felt guilty for the suffering they could be feeling right now. If only she hadn't come here. If only she hadn't taken them with her. If only she'd protected them better...

Though, Flowey obviously didn't help the situation. "And you know what the best part is. Everything is your fault. All those kids. All these monsters. They cared about you. And because of that, they came here, into my trap! Isn't that delicious?"

"Shut up..." Frisk mumbled under her breath.

"Wh-"

"I SAID SHUT THE FUCK UP!" 

Flowey was taken aback by this for a moment, before that facade of strength quickly dissolved. Instead of saying anything else, she broke down. Crying quietly, which only made the flower continue his ramblings. This torture... It was amusing, at any rate. "But don't worry... This doesn't really matter. This is all just a sad work of fiction... The only way you'll win is if you make it outside here. But I don't want that. I want to keep playing with you until I say so. Because if you win, you won't want to play. And we can't have that, can we?

Though if, somehow, you DO win against me, then I'll let everyone go... The barrier might then be broken. You'll get your happy ending. Yet, I won't be letting that happen. You'll stay here as long as I want you to!" 

Suddenly, something else happened. Frisk's soul came out again, and it was surrounded once more. Surrounded the same way she'd been ages ago. Something she never wished to experience again. And yet, this continued, all because someone willed things this way. Flowey just seemed ever more amused as he planned his next attack. "EVEN IF THAT MEANS KILLING YOU A MILLION TIMES!" With that, it began. Flowey began whittling down her health. Causing the same amount of damage each time, just so it hurt even more. But before his last attempt, something happened. 

The pellets redirected themselves... 

Toward Flowey!

Though the flower quickly dodged, he realized exactly what had happened. So did Frisk. The children were rebelling!

"What are you idiots DOING?!" he whispered, as if speaking with himself. "You work for me! ... A rebellion, huh? Don't worry, you fools won't last long... But we're STARTING with your little friend!"

As he tried again, something else happened. Instead of redirection, the pellets were blocked by flame. Flame made by Toriel.

"Do not be afraid, my child. No matter what happens, we will always protect you!" she exclaimed.

Growing angrier, the flower continued to hurl more attacks, that were all promptly blocked. 

"THAT'S RIGHT, HUMAN! YOU CAN WIN! JUST DO WHAT I WOULD DO, BELIEVE IN YOU!"

"Hey! Human! If you got past ME, you can do anything! So don't worry, we're with you all the way!"

"Huh? You haven't beaten this guy yet? Come on, this weirdo's got nothing on you!"

"Technically, it's impossible for you to win... But somehow, I know you can do it..!"

"Human, for the future of humans and monsters..."

That final phrase, merged with the voice of others. Others, who had almost telepathically communicated this message...

"STAY DETERMINED!" 

Even then, other monsters that Frisk had befriended arrived as well. To bring their piece in. They would fight with Frisk too, if only...

If only...

"UNBELIEVABLE! This can't be happening! You... You..!

You're all such...

IDIOTS!

ALL OF YOUR SOULS ARE MINE!"

With the influx of magic overwhelming Frisk, everything became hard to see. No one knew what to do. What could anyone do? Everything was completely insane... There was so much screaming... So much noise... Until.

It went eerily quiet.

Frisk was now alone. There were no kids. No monsters. No Flowey. It was only her, and one other person. A small goat monster. Someone that couldn't be too much older or younger than her. At any rate, things showed as if he were testing something out. Feeling for something he hadn't felt in such a long time. That was his real form... 

I have something to confess to you all.

I knew this would happen.

I knew exactly what would come of it, especially with the amass of souls Flowey collected.

There wasn't much I could do about this, but...

"Finally... I was so tired of being a flower..."

He solemnly turned in order to face Frisk. Wiping his eyes as if he'd been crying before then. 

Though now, he smiled.

"Howdy

"Ch- No... Gloom, is that you?"

"It's me, your best friend."

Suddenly, he changed. Away from the Asriel I once new. At that moment, he became something, or someone different. Though, at his core, he was essentially the same. Possibly...

Either way, I knew exactly who that was.

* "ASRIEL DREEMURR"


	45. Phase One

Frisk could feel dimensions distorting around her. Nothing was as it should be, everything had changed, without knowing better from worse. She could feel herself floating on air, gravity's pull no longer affecting her movements. The feeling should've been invigorating, yet these ideas only filled her uneasiness. Even as passive as I was, I understood how this wasn't right. I understood how I needed to stop this, or similarly help Frisk complete the same task. Maybe I'd show myself? Perhaps not. I didn't know how I should help, only knowing how imperative it was to follow through. Although Frisk couldn't completely notice my presence, that wasn't important. Instead, focusing toward a solution called for attention. 

With Asriel, shown as some godly power, something had to be done so he'd come back. 

For now, though, both of us knew that actions wouldn't do much against him. There were things she could do that assisted her own progress, but nothing to calm the raging beast before us. Maybe this meant it would come through other means. Means we've yet to unlock, but would reveal themselves through time. 

For now, while there were things we could do, everything came back toward listening to Asriel's speeches. Some new interest he'd uncovered was monologuing, that was clear to us both. Even then, listening to everything he wished to say was somewhat interesting.

And I still couldn't believe he actually chose his old character from when we were children, the God of Hyperdeath. Good times, but better comedy material.

"You know... I don't care about destroying this world anymore."

"After I defeat you and gain total control over the timeline, I just want to reset everything."

"All your progress... Everyone's memories... I'll bring them all back to zero!"

"Then we can do everything ALL OVER AGAIN!"

"And you know what the best part of all this is? You'll do it."

"And then you'll lose to me again."

"And again."

"AND AGAIN!!"

"Because you want your 'happy ending'"

"Because you 'love your friends'"

"Because you'll 'never give up'"

"Isn't that hilarious? Your DETERMINATION... The power that let you get this far... It's gonna be your downfall!"

"Now, enough messing around... It's time to purge this timeline once and for all!"

Frisk felt shaken through his last statement, unsure of what she could do. What she should do. Though, she didn't have much time to think things through, before she realized something was warping. Instead of the usual battlefield we're used to, she found herself surrounded by darkness, being pulled toward something she couldn't see.

Obviously, with what little strength she had against everything, she pulled away, trying to avoid being sucked inside. Avoid being killed and lost forever. She didn't want that. All she wished for was to stay determined. For the sake of everyone she'd met so far. That was her only driving force thus far, since nothing else was around to hope for. Nothing left to protect. 

Though, somehow, she did survive everything thrown her way. Though insanely battered and bruised, she made it through everything. She was still standing, even, which was the most astounding part, to both of us really. 

Asriel, too, seemed shocked. Though his face soon turned smug as always. "...even after that attack, you're still in my way?" he asked incredulously. "Wow... You really ARE something special. But don't get cocky. Until now, I've only been using a fraction of my real power! Let's see what good your DETERMINATION stands against THIS!!"

And suddenly, everything shifted again. Though, it didn't move toward an attack. Instead, the monster became something different. His appearance was obviously different, though stranger than that. You could feel the power emanating off him. As if to tell us that all hope was lost. And if Frisk was sensible, maybe she would've understood that. Thankfully for both of us, she wasn't. Instead, she planned to continue. For the sake of everyone she cared about. And while I couldn't understand that anymore, maybe this was something good. Something that would help us continue. 

Though, instead of anything that led to an answer to stop him, his next words only rattled Frisk further. "Ura ha ha! Behold, my TRUE power! I can feel it... The more you resist, the more your grip toward this world slips away. The more you resist, the more your friends forget. Your life ends here... In a world where no one remembers you! Though, you still keep hanging on... That's fine. Soon, you'll forget everything too. That attitude will serve you well in the next life!"

The attacks continued to pelt her, though I could sense how she felt. How she wavered. And yet, she continued. Something that even I couldn't do. Impressive, at least to me. "Ura ha ha... Still?! Come on... Show me what good your determination is now!"

She couldn't move, that much was obvious. She could barely breathe without the weight of Asriel's power attempting to crush her spirit, and possibly her lungs. Everything seemed impossible, and yet... Yet she kept trying to do something. Something that would save her, and everyone else. But nothing happened. 

She kept struggling, but nothing happened. 

She tried to reach her file, to RESET and go back somewhat, so she could prevent this. But nothing happened. 

She tried again... Nothing happened.

"It seems saving the game is really impossible..." I mumbled, though loud enough for something to happen. For Frisk to hear me! She turned her head toward my ghostly form. Although I didn't know what could really be done, I knew one thing for sure. Frisk wasn't planning to give up. She didn't plan to let Asriel control things. 

She continued to stare back toward me, as if welcoming an old friend. Welcoming someone with the force thinking she hadn't seen me in years. Really? It couldn't have been more than a week since we met when she'd died. Though, with the circumstances as they were, her reaction made complete sense to me. 

"Chara... What should I do..? I can't save them, I can't save my game... I don't know what I can do anymore! Am... Am I just meant to rot here..?"

"I know you can't save, I understand that, but..."

* "Maybe, with what little power you have left... You can SAVE something else!"

Frisk though everything through her head over again. Maybe she needed to think more before she continued. Though she didn't quite do that. Instead, she felt energy coursing through her. Energy that she hadn't felt before now. Something that she'd desperately needed to get through every obstacle here, and every obstacle in the past. She felt real, true determination... But also something else. 

She felt newer ideas come through her head. 

Not just determination anymore.

PATIENCE.

BRAVERY.

INTEGRITY.

PERSEVERANCE.

KINDNESS.

JUSTICE.

These six traits. The ones belonging to children before... She could feel them inside her. Calling toward her with fainter voices than before. Although they seemed unsure of themselves, Frisk understood what her mission was. 

She wouldn't just save everyone through some file. She had to save them through her own means. Through her own power. And most importantly, through what she learned through her travels. 

Through that, something became available to her. She noticed something new. Something she could see, far away through the distance. She could see her friends. Although they didn't seem the same, she wished to help them. Help whoever she noticed through there. Through bursts of energy she hadn't experienced since she arrived toward this hellish void, she bounded toward them, confusing the goat she'd been struggling against until now.

She saw two people... Those she felt close to... She knew who they were, but they didn't seem to understand that themselves. Although they were there, they weren't completely themselves. They were lost... Alone. 

Maybe, for them, she could fix everything. Maybe she could even...

Make them remember...


	46. Phase Two

Frisk could feel herself running toward the two figures in that distance, though no matter how much she tried to run, she felt herself being held back, maybe because of the force of Asriel's power. She couldn't quite tell what the answer to the question was, but she didn't stop. No matter what, she couldn't find it in herself to stop.

Keep going.

Keep going.

Stay Determined.

She'd made it... Against all odds, she made it, right in front of the two figures, without faces. Without names but... Frisk could tell that she knew them. She had to... Why would they be trying to call out to her if she didn't? But they were so hard to make out. So hard to comprehend. But in a test of instinct, she thought about what she might do next. Though, quickly enough she noticed that she wouldn't have to. Because, without the awareness of Frisk herself, she had been drawn into something more familiar. A fight...

And everything became clear to her. 

She pressed the ACT button as if it were a routine by now, which was at least a good choice for the group.

They were both known as Lost Souls, according to the things she saw before her but... Maybe she would be able to learn their true identities. So she turned toward the one on the right, and looked at her options. Check, Spar, Talk, and Correct. Although she wasn't completely sure which she should do, she lingered toward the idea of comforting this spirit. They were lost, after all. Maybe they needed someone to help them feel better. 

Looking toward them, the girl sat down, unsure of what to say. There was so much that could be said about these things. How did they get here? Were they okay? Who were they? Those were questions she wanted the answers to, but where to start? How to phrase it?

"Is... Is something wrong?"

The Lost Soul stared at her, the face looking back at her still fuzzy, still hard to discern. But thankfully, the speech they uttered was clear enough to understand, although she couldn't understand them all that well.

"Why would it matter if something is wrong? I only live to serve humanity. The real question is, are you alright?"

The words coming from them shocked Frisk to their core. She didn't wish to say all such things, but all the same she understood that this couldn't be the measure of someone. Who would've told them something like this, and why? She knew she had to refute this somehow, but her mind continued to blank.

"That can't be your only purpose...-" Frisk added, frowning lightly as she spoke. She was unsure about where she would go with it but... Maybe that was okay. "I don't know what your purpose is, but that isn't everything to you, is it? You make your own purpose, right?" 

This seemed to confuse the soul, something making sense with them. But this didn't seem to change anything right away. But that also meant it was her enemies' turns, to which she wasn't completely ready for. Even though she could sense the recollection in the first she spoke to, there were still attacks heading toward them. Knives and swords flooded closer, the knives would stay in a single row, as the sword would keep trying to jab in different places. Because of this, she could at least avoid them for now. She was happy with this sort of thing...

Then, she set her sights on the other soul, who seemed to be sitting by themself. They were smaller than the first, but other than that there wasn't much that she could do to distinguish them. Hopefully, that would be alright. Frisk looked at her options for the other this time. One, thankfully, stood out above the rest. It was the option to Hug, to which Frisk took advantage of right away. She wouldn't have to think of what to say, or what to do but... Maybe that was okay.

Without saying a thing, the girl hugged the spirit softly. This seemed to do something rather extraordinary. This caused the haze to be lifted around both spirits, before Frisk even noticed what had happened. It had been a little bit, before the spirit began to cry. Though because of this lifting of the haze, Frisk realized that it wasn't just some Lost Soul that she couldn't connect with. Neither of them were... It was Fiona and Jacob, who she finally seemed to break down in front of. Without even meaning to at first, but it seemed to grow even more as the two of them reached in for a group embrace. 

"I'm so sorry I... I didn't realize-" Frisk began.

"No... It's not your fault. We'd lost ourselves after all, becoming ghosts of who we were in the past..." Jacob stopped her, giving her a smile.

"I'm just happy you're here, Frisk-" Fiona added. "But there's other people you gotta help too! And we wanna go with you! At least I know I do-"

"Not to worry, Fiona, I feel the same way."

Frisk, although she was still feeling the tears well in her eyes, despite her attempts to wipe them away, nodded at the proposition they were giving. "Okay... I'd really like your help, everyone. But just be careful... I don't want you to get lost again."

The other two nodded, and the group continued forward, into a set of circumstances none of them would be able to predict. 

There were three battles ahead of them, each of them containing the friends everyone had met along the way. Everyone who Frisk had gotten close to through her journey through the underground.

First, came Elliot. He was easy to make remember, surprisingly enough. The three of them had each sparred with him once, the girls losing quickly in comparison with his brute force, and Jacob seeming to come out victorious because of his superior training and skill. Once everyone had gotten into their tussles with him, he'd grown excited enough for his memories to resurface, and for him to join the group.

Then, there was Claire. She was a slight bit harder, considering how she had always been the type to keep her interests in her chest. But Jacob knew what to do for her there too, with Frisk quick to catch on while the younger children could only watch. They'd performed a routine with her, something similar to what she'd done when her and Frisk had fought off the possessed dummy from before. Such a routine coming back to her was enough to bring her mind back, though the next two would seem to get even harder, considering the lesser amount of time the group had interacted with them.

This, of course, was referring to Lyra and Aaron. The two of them seemed close to each other, and while Frisk knew why the spirits didn't seem to. There were lots of things that they could've tried to do, a lot of them resulting in failure at first, but finally, the idea had been placed. Considering the two's musical talents, the others soon found themselves playing to that sort of strength. With the magic around them, they could do a lot at any rate. Being able to channel the magic around that area, the kids seemed to make instruments they could use, Jacob on the violin, Fiona on the piano, Elliot on the cowbell, and Frisk and Claire acting as backup singers for the main duo, who both sang and had their guitars ready to work. It was a slower process, almost as if they'd preformed an entire concert to the group, but that was alright. Everyone was having fun, including the lost souls who, had after a while found themselves back to normal. 

Now, all of the human souls had finally found themselves free from the loss of themselves, but there was something else to be done. Something else that Frisk could see in the distance, but just out of reach. The others though, they seemed to understand the problem at hand all the same. They weren't the only souls that needed to be saved now. Instead, there were the monster's souls that they needed to bring back. And that was where they truly needed to think.

"I don't... I don't feel like I know the monsters as well as I know all of you," Frisk said, panicking as she tried to bring something to her brain. But that wasn't as easy to do for her. She hadn't traveled with them for so long, but she really did want to help. The real question that was brought to her was how.

"Frisk... You really should rest now. We know them all the better," Lyra mentioned, frowning at the distraught state she found Frisk in. "Maybe you can watch us do it, but you shouldn't get yourself so hung up about it-"

"But I want to help you! You've been through a lot too!"

There was a quiet among the other six humans, as they seemed to speak with each other. She couldn't quite hear them, though we all could tell what they would be saying. Shit talki- I mean planning the next move, and how Frisk might be a part of that. Finally, they'd found themselves at a good consensus. 

"You want to help us then?" Jacob began. "Fine then. We all know what to do though, so follow our leads until everything's ready."

Frisk nodded at the suggestion, as everyone came into motion. Everything seemed so similar to universes past when it comes to converting the monsters all the same, so I suppose I wouldn't have to regurgitate all this to you either. Undyne had to remember how determined humans weren't all awful, Alphys had to learn that people really did care about her, Papyrus had to learn that capturing people wasn't great, Sans had to believe in himself, and the Dreemurrs needed to learn how to let go, and let others take the reigns. Gathering everyone together, Frisk could finally put herself at ease with everything that had been accomplished. 

But now, she could see them all fading from view, slowly but surely...

"Wait, what do I do now?!" Frisk asked, as she watched the souls she'd saved continue to waver from their position.

"You'll know what to do..." Claire assured.

"Keep going kid, we've got your back!" Sans added.

"We all believe in you..." Fiona said.

"The hardest part is over now!" Asgore said.

"But most importantly..." Jacob segued.

"STAY DETERMINED!"

That final cry resonated as Frisk finally found herself back where she began. In front of the hulking beast that was Asriel. Someone that she couldn't defeat before with only her own power but... Of course, there was more that could be done now than ever before. Her strength was returning, and Asriel didn't seem to be the same unstoppable force from before. Instead, he seemed to be wavering in himself. 

From there, Frisk knew that now, despite the odds from before, she might just have a chance.


	47. His Symphony

As Frisk looked up at Asriel's gigantic form, she realized that something was going on. Something different, after her communications with all these lost souls. He seemed to be holding his head, writhing for a moment before he began to speak. "Wh... What did you do?! What is this feeling? What's happening to me?!" he yelled, as if Frisk hadn't even made an appearance. "No... NO! I don't need ANYONE!" he yelled again, Frisk frowning at the sight. What was she supposed to do?"

After that, he continued to hurl those beams of light at her, though something about him wavered. Something that Frisk was beginning to see very clearly. What she'd done was more than freeing souls... It came to the very fabric of the monster's newly made soul in itself. Those feelings she put into the others... They were reflecting back toward Asriel all the same. She wasn't sure how, but maybe they would get through to him in one way or another.

Frisk took a step toward him, taking her chance to dodge everything that was hurled at her, taking those steps no matter what anyone had to say to her about it. She just kept walking toward her, as Asriel's yelling continued, ferocious as Frisk continued, hoping that this would do something. Hoping that this wasn't all for naught, and she was truly making a difference.

"STOP IT! Get away from me! Do you hear me? I'll tear you to pieces!"

"No, you won't..."

Frisk turned around... That. That wasn't her saying this. And it wasn't Asriel, either. No.

It was me.

I couldn't help it... Call me sentimental but I just, can't watch Frisk struggle like this. She didn't deserve such a thing, especially after everything that at happened. Everything she taught those kids. Hell, everything she taught me. Because after following her lead, and watching from the sidelines, I learned one thing. Appearances shouldn't judge someone's character, and even though I though she was just like those other humans that hurt me, that wasn't the case. 

She was kind, forgiving, and loving. Nothing like others that I've met. While those children had a similar view, she seemed to have even more of a difference to her. She was outward, open, and it was wonderful to watch. Watching her grow, and change into a more well rounded person. I don't know about anyone else, but that was one of the best feelings and experiences that I've had in this sickening afterlife I forced myself into.

Asriel though, I could tell he was reeling back at the sight of me. I don't blame him either, since it had probably been the first time that he'd seen me in such a long time. "Chara..?" he asked, his eyes showing that familiar at me, as I nodded. His eyes searched between myself and Frisk, seeming utterly confused. "So you aren't... Wow but-" he had to think of his retort to this. Obviously, he had believed that Frisk, my little living doppelganger was me. I suppose it wasn't such a strange assumption. Our hair, and some of our other features were the same as well... But at any rate, through this realization, his next statement was directed toward me, instead of Frisk, who just seemed to be watching the both of us now, hoping that I could make things right, somehow. A luxury that she deserved, after everyone else had depended on her for such a long time.

"Chara... Do you know why I'm doing this? Why I keep fighting to keep you around?" he asked. And yet, I couldn't answer. I hadn't kept my attention so far on him. Instead, I kept myself toward everything that was new. At the same time, I just refused to look at someone who I thought was posing as my brother. But instead, I was the one in the wrong there. But I stayed quiet, instead of responding to this. And he understood that, to which he just kept on talking. "I'm doing it, because you're special, Chara... You're the only one who understands me, after all. You're the only one that's fun to play with anymore..."

"Asriel, no. I haven't been playing with you. All this time, I've been somewhere else."

"I mean, when we were kids, dummy."

"But this isn't you, Asriel! We aren't talking about the same thing. The real you would never feel like this. Not about life, not about any of this!"

Asriel seemed to backpedal for a moment, looking at me with hurt eyes. All I could hope from that was that he was starting to understand. To which, he showed me that he did. "You're right... That's not just it. I-I... I'm doing this because I care about you- More than anyone else!"

Now it was my turn to stagger for a moment. I could understand where it came from. After all, I was his sister. His only real friend. This was our plan. But that could only mean that he hadn't seen me after I realized the errors of our ways. No, the errors of my ways, shown after I'd seen everything unfold before me, like a story in itself.

"Asriel... Asriel, please- What we did, it wasn't right! People had to suffer, we had to die because of it, this wasn't right at all! We just have to accept everything, and let it go, okay."

"I can't, Chara! I don't want this to end. I don't want you to leave! I don't want to lose someone close to me again-"

"Then stop this!"

"No, you stop!" he exclaimed, a final beam of light coming toward us. There was nowhere Frisk and I could go. But, there was still something I could do. I jumped in front of Frisk for all of this. It was painful, but I knew I could handle this. My soul was powerful... But that didn't mean all this still wouldn't hurt me.

Asriel's face... At the sight of what I was doing, he seemed both afraid and surprised. "STOP DOING THIS! JUST LET ME WIN FOR ONCE!" he continued to blast us, to which I kept guarding Frisk, as if my soul's stability depended on it. As if this timeline's stability depended on it. And no matter what, we both kept holding on, even if Frisk seemed terrified for my health and safety. 

"Chara... Are you gonna be okay?" the girl asked, fearful of everything else. 

"I'll be fine, as long as we both hold on. I don't have a body to lose, but you do!" I exclaimed. "We can both do this, just hold on to your Determination."

Frisk, although she looked at me with a nervous glance, nodded toward me and we just kept on grinding with it, Asriel continuing with his onslaught, and screaming all the same. 

"STOP IT! STOP IT NOW!!"

But despite everything... Such a powerful blast didn't take either of us down. Instead, we were both left standing. And even after my protection, Frisk seemed battered as well. But she still stood, just as I did. Asriel, instead of saying everything he wanted to, or even continuing with all these blasts to finish us off for good, he just stopped. He seemed hurt. He seemed pained, and even so she hurt me a bit.

"...Chara. I'm so alone... I'm so afraid... Chara I-..."

Without a word, I moved toward my brother, and went quiet. Instead of leaving him to be alone, I did the only thing I thought could work for him now. I hugged him. It was all I could think of. He needed it, and I needed it a little bit as well. 

But, I didn't want Frisk to worry about this either, so I sent her something different. Something I was sure that she would be able to understand, about the two of us, and how our relationship stood. Because despite everything, she didn't know everything. And now, I think she, and you all, should know our story.

\---

Back then, humans weren't quite as feared as they were before. Even those with determination still had credibility, and no hostility shown toward them, even if they had so much power toward them.

Asriel and his parents... They accepted me for who I was. Even if I was volatile. Even if there was something wrong with me. They cared about me. They called me a princess, and took care of me as one of their own. Everyone thought as me as the hope of the underground. While they must have been wrong, and I'm sure that they were, it still felt wonderful while it lasted. 

And while I didn't know everything, and I still don't know everything, I did know what would help Asriel now. The same sort of treatment, and love that they gave me back in the past. Maybe if he felt those same things, he could at least calm down so I could talk to him... Let him know why I changed. Let him know why these humans being able to live, and not destroying them as if he were a god... 

Maybe then, we could understand each other...


	48. To The Surface

When Frisk finally woke up in the end, she couldn't remember what had happened. She had been somewhere with Asriel, she had started to get through to him before... Everything went black. But of course, I couldn't tell you much. After all, that's something you'll have to figure out for yourself. Instead though, Frisk could only see the monsters and humans, all standing over her, as if they'd been waiting for years for her to finally awaken, even if it's only been twenty minutes tops since everything happened. 

"Oh, you're awake! Thank goodness..." Toriel sighed, a happy smile on her face, as more and more people began to dogpile the confused child, almost bombarding her with all the love and support that they were giving. There were so many concerned friends of her's, to which she had to take so much time before she could finally question what was going on, and question where they were, and how they'd even gotten here. 

"Excuse me, I'm happy you all are here, but..." she began, with a bit of a overstimulated and bombarded expression. "Do any of you remember what happened after I freed you all? Because I can't... Seem to remember a lot of that."

There was a look between the group, trying to see if anyone had an answer before a shake of the head came through. "Well..." Alphys started.

"WE COULDN'T REMEMBER MUCH OF THE EXPERIENCE EITHER-" Papyrus added. 

"But that's not super important! The door to the east of this place, it's open! The barrier's been destroyed!" Lyra exclaimed, clapping her hands as she showed it off. And she was right. Instead of the glittering lights that Frisk remembered from her time beforehand, those that represented the barrier, she saw the real surface. The sky from above, the sun was even starting to lower in the sky, as the color of it began to change. 

Frisk smiled at the sight of it all, almost being brought to tears from it. Even if it wasn't the whole thing yet, that couldn't stop her from realizing that all these efforts. All of them being brought to fruition right here. Honestly, it was enough to make anyone cry, wasn't it? "I... I'm so glad... You guys are finally free, huh?" she replied.

"We were going to head right there once you woke up but well... You seem a little stressed. Maybe you'd like to take a break?" Claire asked, her eyes betraying the worry she was feeling for the girl. Frisk could only nod at the sound of it, considering that after all of those people trying to talk to her at once well... She was feeling a bit dizzy, to where some time alone might help her get her bearings back. 

At that point, some of the adults began ushering the younger kids out, as the room was finally empty, at least almost as such. Jacob had stayed behind at that point, to which Frisk didn't seem to mind at any rate. He sat down next to her, to which Frisk had ended up leaning on his shoulder.

"So, there it is..." Jacob began. "After such a long time, we're finally free..." 

"Yeah, it took a lot of time to get here, didn't it... How long have you even been in here, waiting for the barrier to break and all that?" Frisk asked, finally realizing that it must have been long. Long and arduous to work for something that may not even happen. 

"Decades... Longer than I was even above the surface and well- That's the same for all the humans, I suppose."

"How long have monsters even been down here, then. It can't really be that long, can it?"

"In the grand scheme of history you're right, it wasn't quite that long, especially considering how far the monsters even went back. They've been around longer than the human race had, after all but... It was around the Revolutionary War when the monsters were sealed down here. A long time for you, and even for me but still..."

"Yeah, but even if it wouldn't be that long for them, it's still hard. Being stuck somewhere that they had to start over."

"At least it's over though..." he smiled, looking toward the sun. "I haven't seen the sun in such a long time, it's sad almost. But at least the first thing I get to see out there is a sunset, considering how late it's already getting. But, I suppose before we go out there, I have one thing, something that you've probably been waiting for as well."

Much to Frisk's surprise, he ended up leaning in toward her for another kiss, to which she accepted, and ended up kissing him back all the same, for a good amount of time. It was a good place to be. It was silent, and you could feel the serenity in the room no matter where you stood. Then again, I would be the only one who would be able to feel it for real, at any rate.

But after it ended, the boy just nodded toward her. "Alright, I guess we should head out now."

"Yeah, I don't wanna miss the sunset!" Frisk nodded, as the two of them began running up to the next place. Finally, the surface... Where they were both finally free.

As they approached, it was as if everyone was standing around, watching as the sunset was finally beginning in all of its glory. Although wonder and excitement was present in the eyes of the human children, it couldn't be paralleled to the monsters, who looked overly ecstatic as they buzzed with their words.

The other kids though, they soon noticed the late arrivals, and one by one seemed to saunter over to the lovebirds, Elliot's dumb little grin betraying the reason for this. "So... What were you to doing back there that took so long?" the younger boy asked, as the rest of the group just sighed with a bit of annoyance. 

"Aw, c'mon!" Fiona groaned. "You weren't supposed to sound like that!" She gave him a pointed look, which caused the boy to concede, as Frisk and Jacob could only stare at each other for a moment, before a response could be made. 

"Well, if you'd like to know so badly, there was a bit of kissing involved," Jacob soon said, as Claire just giggled at him, while Lyra and Fiona had such excited faces. The other two boys though just seemed to look at them all, almost seeming confused about what was putting these girls into such a frenzy about one kiss. 

They continued to buzz over the drama that surrounded them, but all the same it began to turn later and later. The sun was gone by now, and people were beginning to leave. First, Alphys and Undyne with their wards, then Papyrus and Sans taking Elliot and Claire along. That just left Frisk, Aaron, Fiona, and the goats to their own devices, and there was some sort of tension in the air, especially as the smallest child's battery seemed to run lower and lower. "Asgore..?" Toriel soon asked, as the man perked up a bit to look at her.

"Yes, Toriel?"

"I was wondering... If you could take Fiona down with you... She's getting tired and well, I have something to ask of dear Frisk here."

"Ah well, of course I could do that, come along you two-"

But while Aaron already seemed ready to move along, Fiona was already falling asleep near Asgore's cape. Because of this, the king could only pick the child up and put her on his shoulders, as he headed down, leaving Frisk alone with Toriel for a spell. 

And with that, Toriel looked toward her, with a smile on her face. "Goodness... It really is a beautiful sky, is it not?" she replied.

"Of course, just as great as I remember it being."

"Yes, I remember it being just the same as it was all those years before we were sealed down. Back then I was just a girl but... I suppose I'm getting off topic from what I wanted to say."

"Huh? Then what was it?"

"I wanted to know if you wanted to help us further. Not in anything strenuous, but I want to know your opinion still before we go along with it. I wanted to know if you wanted to be the ambassador to the monster race. I mean, they may not be so happy to have us around yet, so maybe having a human helping us right now would be something good for us..."

"Oh, really? I don't remember a lot of my life before after all so, why not help you guys? I would love to be your ambassador."

Toriel gave a soft smile toward the girl as she nodded at this response. "Alright, dear... Now, maybe we should be going then ourselves? It's rather dark now, isn't it?"

"Yeah, let's go!"

And with that, the mother and the child walked down the mountain, hand in hand into the perfect life. The legends always said that those who came here never came back. But now, that only held true for me. But I wonder now where the rest of this would take us. Where would we go from here? Well, that's a story for another day, and a story that may be told. But now well... Now, we've finished, and brought to the world our happily ever after. Of course, even because of such a story well... There's always more than just the happy ending to tell, isn't there?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: THE PACIFIST ROUTE IS FINALLY DONE!! This is basically the whole meat of the story, and while I'll be putting some Neutral Route actions inside this story for you all later, this is the end of this part. Of course, there will always be more to learn, and I hope you'll be looking out for stuff from me in the future


End file.
